A Glimmer of Hope
by Jubeichankawaii
Summary: A Post Canon story about Sesshoumaru and Rin. It begins ten years after he left her in his brother's village. He tells her they can never be together, so Rin decides to head out on her own. On the way her sword gains a new ability, and she becomes the leader of her own wolf pack? Will they ever see each other again? -It's a bit angst-y, but all good love stories are.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: I do not own Inuyasha.

The wind blew across the moonlit meadow, it brought with it the scents of moist earth and fresh growth. It had rained earlier in the day, and the late-spring sun hadn't been strong enough to completely dry it up. She sat on a large boulder and stared at the moon, as she tended to do whenever she felt particularly lonely. The sight of the moon seemed to have the power to cheer her up, it reminded her of him. He was due for a visit, it had been over a month since the last time he came, that could be another reason for her silent vigil.

She sighed into the breeze, then stood up and brushed off her beautiful dark blue kimono, it was his most recent gift and she wanted to wear it for him. Her heart ached to see him again, she wanted travel with him like she used to when she was small but, she knew he did not want her in the way if he got into a fight, she _had_ already died twice, after all.

She headed back to her home of the past ten years. It was not the usual human dwelling. She was not comfortable in the type of huts favored by the villagers. They were too open to attack, and since it was located outside of the village she wanted something a little more secure. She had asked Inuyasha to help her build it and it turned out exactly how she had hoped. It was a tree house. She had thick curtains that lined the walls in the winter because she couldn't have a fire inside it, she had only taken one of them down so far in case the weather turned chill again. The tree house was situated about halfway up a rather large tree with a lot of branches. There was no ladder because there were plenty of branches for her to use to climb her way up. The outside of the tree-house was camouflaged so the casual observer wouldn't notice it

She climbed in side and slid her door shut. Then she lit a candle and started her nightly routine of brushing her waist-length dark brown hair and putting on her nightclothes, before she finally laid down in bed and extinguished the flame. She stretched out on her futon and tried to fall asleep. Her mind raced with thoughts of him.

_Why can't I get him off my mind? Why do I miss him so badly? Is it love? I am a fool._

She slowly began to doze off, and about an hour after she laid down she fell asleep. She slept fitfully that night, tossing and turning, but she did not wake until dawn. As the sun rose it filtered its rays through the branches of her tree and, into her open window. She rubbed the sleep out of her eyes and stretched herself into wakefulness. She then rose from her bed and started to gather her blue kimono, a towel and, the "shampoo and conditioner" that Kagome had given her to bathe with. Then she headed out to the stream. The dew from the grass was cold on her bare feet and sparkled in the morning light as she made her way across the meadow.

When she reached the stream she placed her things by a nearby tree and proceeded to undress. She eased her way into the icy cold stream. It was late enough into the season that the banks were no longer swollen with the snows of winter. The water at its deepest came up about halfway up her thighs so she sat down slowly and washed her hair and body thoroughly, she was pretty sure Lord Sesshoumaru didn't like the smell of humans who were dirty. She tried to bathe everyday or every other day when weather permitted.

When she was clean she headed for her things, dried off, and carefully dressed in her dark blue kimono and silver obi. She toweled her hair, and shook it out a little to help it dry. She brushed her long hair and gathered her things up. She stopped by her tree-house and put her things away before she headed to the village. She headed straight for Kagome and Inuyasha's hut.

She was greeted by the happy shrieks of small children before she even got close. "Its Rin! Its Rin! She's here Mama! She's here!" Asuka's voice exploded out of the hut. She's the eldest, seven years old, and very talkative and full of energy. She had her mother's hair and her father's eyes.

"I heard you the first time sweetie there's no need to repeat yourself." Kagome said, as Rin entered the hut. "Good morning, Rin. Did you sleep well?"

"I did, Kagome, thank you. Can I help you make breakfast, or would you rather I tend to the twins?"

"Well seeing how my husband has already snuck away to "hunt", I really could use the help with the twins. I don't blame him, they're in a rare mood today, they're trying to break their puppy teeth." Kagome said.

A feeling of dread came over Rin at those words. She remembered Asuka at that age. She still has visible scars on her hands and legs from it. The very idea of going through that again, but doubled, almost made her bolt for the door. Unfortunately the twins had entered the room during the conversation and were making their way straight to Rin. They were fraternal twins, one male, Hiro and the other female, Hina. It even showed in their looks, they were polar opposites. All the children have their father's hanyou ears. Hiro has his mother's dark brown hair and brown eyes, and Hina was the spitting image of her father. Before Rin knew what happened both of the twins had grabbed a hand and clamped their jaws down hard.

AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" Rin's scream scared the nearby birds from the trees. Inuyasha heard it, but sniffed the air and knew it was just the twins doing, he wanted no part in that- just yet. He was out looking for a fight, if he could get a strong enough bone he was sure he could pacify the twins. Suddenly, he smelled it, the scent of another demon nearby. He ran through the forest following the scent,when he was attacked from the side by a tanuki. He bopped it on the head and ran on, there's no way its bone could stand up to the twins. He needed something bigger.

He ran on until he smelled another demon. _Okay, hopefully this one does the trick._ The earth shakes suddenly and a deep roar sounds from nearby. It was Koumajutsu, a bear demon. _ That oughta do it. _ Koumajutsu growled at him and charged, Inuyasha unsheathed Tetsaiga and yelled "Kaze no Kizu!" and the bear was knocked back. He crashed hard against a tree, but was back on his feet in a moment. He uttered a fierce growl and charged at Inuyasha again. Koumajutsu pulled his sharp-clawed paw back and slashed across at Inuyasha, who dodged to the side and yelled, "Kaze no Kizu, again. Koumajutsu did not rise again, he was reduced to bones in moments. Inuyasha walked up and collected two thick femur bones. _ Thank you Koumajutsu. _He thought as he headed back to the village with the bones for the twins. Suddenly he smelled an annoying scent. He picked up his pace, he would arrive at the village first.

Back in the village, the twins are leashed to a tree in the yard while Kagome bandages Rin's hands. "I'm so sorry, Rin. I've been trying to teach them not to draw blood, but they just don't listen. I'm just glad they weren't like this when I was breast-feeding." Kagome said.

"No leash Mama!" Hina shouted.

"This sucks!" said Hiro, he may look like his mom but he takes after his dad. He started chanting, "This sucks!," soon Hina joined in. At first, Kagome ignored it. As the minutes ticked slowly by and the twin's chant started to rake on her nerves, her face took on a scary looking aspect, and she turned to the twins slowly. They looked into her eyes and quietened and their ears flattened back against their heads. _Mama is scary sometimes,_ they think to each other that odd way twins sometimes do, as they looked sidelong at each other.

Something rustled in the nearby bushes, the twins were immediately on alert, but relaxed as their father emerged carrying a bone for each of them. Kagome leaped up and stormed towards Inuyasha. "What are you doing? I don't want them chewing on those things!"

"Huh? Don't worry Kagome I know what I'm doing. They'll be fine in no time. They have to break in their teeth, then we won't have them going around biting people."

Kagome growled dangerously, but knew her husband was right. She looked toward Rin, "Are you okay? I really feel sorry about what the twins did."

"Yes, I'm fine, really. I should be used to it by now." Rin said. She heard voices approaching, and her eyes lit up.

"Lord Sesshoumaru, its been ten years, I don't know why you continue to waste time with this silly human girl." She heard Jaken saying as he and her Lord Sesshoumaru emerged from the forest. She felt her breath catch in her throat as she caught sight of him. She froze in place and was almost afraid to breathe, lest she scare him away, or even awake from a dream. He caught her pause in breathing and could smell her nervousness and wondered what was the cause. She slowly approached him, bowed, and then looked into his eyes and her face lit with a smile. "Uncle Sesshoumaru! The twins screeched when they looked up from their bones. They stood up and reached their small arms toward him. He looked at them passively and remarked "Teetheing, huh?" The twin's frowned and went back to their bones, their uncle was no fool.

*****A/N: Well, that's Chapter One, Please reveiw and let me know if you liked it, if I should continue, and any typos I missed. Thank you all so much! ^-^


	2. Chapter 2

"Uncle Sesshoumaru?" Asuka said as she emerged from the hut. Her face broke into a grin and she ran up to him, and tugged on his mokomoko. His eyes softened momentarily, not long enough for anyone to have noticed. He turned to Rin, "We need to speak," he stated. He turned to walk toward the meadow, she nodded and fell into step behind him.

When they were far from the village he slowed his pace and turned to her, "It has been ten years since I left you in this village. You have become a woman, and learned how to be human. You are skilled with the sword, and a strong fighter. It seems that living here has indeed been a good thing for you."

"Yes, My Lord, I have learned many things since you left me here. I am so happy that you still visit me," she added. She smiled sadly and trailed her fingers through the tall grass as they walked through it. "Why do I get the feeling this is goodbye?" she asked.

_Damn. Well, I've always known she wasn't stupid, I just didn't think she'd catch on this quickly. _He sighed softly. "It's not fair to you."

"What do you mean, My Lord?"

He stared off into the distance as he collected his thoughts, he had to say the right thing.

_You are now an adult, Rin. You are no longer my ward. How do I explain this to you in a way that won't make you cry? I know you don't spend much time with the villagers, other than my brother's family. How are you to find a mate and live like a normal human if I keep coming around? I feel I am giving you false hope by continuing this relationship. I have responsibilities. I can not make the same mistake my father did. I can't let you be my weakness._

"It is for the best if you continue to live as a human, without my interference," he said.

"Lord Sesshoumaru, you can't mean that! I thought I would have a choice, I want to serve you in your palace," she pleaded.

"I'm sorry Rin, that is not possible,"

"But-"

"No, there is no negotiating on this." he stated.

Her eyes filled with tears and she looked away quickly. Her voice was hoarse, and thick with the tears she was trying her best to hold back when she said, "So, I'll never see you again?"

"No."

"You're just going to leave me here with your brother's family and a village full of people who either hate or fear me?" She swallowed her tears, and let out a huge sigh as she sat down in the field. He looked down at her, sighed and sat down himself. He looked into her red-rimmed eyes and asked her, "Is it so bad here?"

She sighed. "No, but can I at least ask why I have no choice in this, My Lord?"

"Can you just trust me that this is for the best?"

" 'Its for the best'? No! That's not an answer! Give me a proper reason!"

"I have a land to rule, I have responsibilities. I can't continue this only to hurt you in the end. I don't want to be the reason you hurt, I think I know how you've come to feel for me. It cannot be." He hadn't wanted to say it, he had hoped it wouldn't come to this. It broke his heart and took all of his willpower to keep his face from betraying his true feelings. His features remained passive as he rose and strode away.

He left her there, in the grass, the sun shining brightly down on her. She watched him walk away, holding her breath so she wouldn't wail at him. She wanted to chase after him and plead to him to change his mind, to take her with him, instead she just watched as he disappeared from her life. She sat stock still in that field for several hours crying silently, tears pouring unbidden from her eyes, as she stared at the place she last saw him before he disappeared from veiw. She did not utter a sound the entire time. When she felt she had finally cried out all her tears, her lap was soaked and so were the cuffs of both her sleeves. She heard footsteps approaching from behind and quickly made sure her face was dry.

"You've been crying. What did that bastard do? I'll kill him." Inuyasha said as he approached. "Kagome was getting worried when you missed lunch, so after you missed dinner too she sent me after you. What happened?" He sat down next to her and looked from her eyes and then to the direction she was staring. He smelled that that was the direction in which Sesshoumaru departed, while awaiting a response. "Hey, Rin? You okay?"

She sighed and looked toward him. "I think I need to go away for a while."

He looked at her curiously. "What do you mean? What happened with Sesshoumaru?"

She gave him a sad look and said, "Tell Kagome that I'm okay and that I'll be back soon, okay?"

"No way, she'll skin me alive if I just let you leave with no explanation."

She smiled at that thought, "I need to find out who I am," she stated.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: I may have to change the summary soon, maybe even bits of the first two chapters too... I have been struck with an idea that I simply cannot get out of my head. *Dark clouds roll across the sky.* ku ku ku...

He strode through the woods, he could have easily flown back to his palace or even teleported, but he was in no real hurry. He took in the scents of the forest around him, he smelled damp leaves, and rotting logs. He could discern no scent of danger, or any nearby prey. _How does she do that to me? I can't lie to her. I can't seem to avoid her direct questions like I can with any other. Ever since we met... _ His mind drifts back to that fateful day, after the fight with Inuyasha, when he lie against the tree he heard her approach. Instantly, he was on his guard, then he saw it was a small human female, he relaxed. _She wants to save me, hn?_ If only he had known how true that thought would turn out to be. Without Rin he never would have learned the truth of his father's heirloom Tenseiga, he never would have learned about compassion, and the fragility of human life, and ultimately he never would have earned his Bakusaiga. She was always so cheerful, so happy to see him, and in truth, he was always happy to see her. Somehow, during the years since he had come to know her, she had gotten under his skin. One smile from her could pull him from even his foulest moods, and make him forget, at least momentarily, any problems he may have. That was another reason why she had to be made to understand that a relationship between them was not possible. He could not make the mistake of his father. He had to prove he was stronger than that. His eyes narrowed dangerously as he thought, _This Sesshoumaru is the most powerful daiyoukai in all the lands, my pups must be as strong as I. I must find a demon mate, love is not an issue._

He snapped out of his reverie, suddenly alert. He smelled another youkai nearby. Not far off he heard the frightened cries of villagers. He thought of Rin, if she knew he ignored their cries she would be disappointed in him. He sprinted toward the sound, when he got to the village he saw kamaitachi, three sharp-clawed weasel youkai, they were obviously triplets. He looked around at the villagers, there were many of them on the ground clutching at their wounds, but none of them seemed dead, yet. The weasels reeked of human blood. That was all the prompting he needed. He faced the weasels, summoning his youki he charged toward the lesser demons. "Dokkasou!" He said as he slashed at the brothers separating them. One of them took a full dose of his poison, and was already melting.

"An-chan!" The remaining two cried and they took in the sight of their youngest brother turning into a pool of poisonous goo. They quickly took on human forms. "How dare you barge in here, ruin our fun, and murder our beloved youngest brother?" The eldest weasel brother said.

"Yeah, who do you think you are?" asked the middle brother.

"Let me ask you, whose lands are you on, and whose villagers are you injuring?" Lord Sesshoumaru stood regally, and looked at the lesser demons icily. "If you do not know," he continued, "I'll tell you, you are on my lands, and you are killing my people!" he shouted as his sclera started to turn red. The brother's eyes widened, then they prostrated themselves on the ground before the noble and terrifying Lord of the West. "We beg your forgiveness, Lord Sesshoumaru the weasel brother's cried.

Sesshoumaru reverted to his usual form, and coolly regarded the demons grovelling at his feet. That was better. "What happened to your brother was a warning. Leave this land. If I ever catch scent of either of you on my lands again your lives will be forfeit."

"Thank you, most gracious Lord Sesshoumaru." The elder demon stammered as he grabbed his brother's arm and quickly backed away, before turning and running in full flight.

_That was a welcome diversion,_ he thought. He looked around at the villagers they were all helping each other into the nearby huts. When he was satisfied that no one was seriously injured he left. He would be at his palace within the hour.

l-l-l-l-l-l-l

"Whoa, hold on, before you go anywhere, will you talk to Kagome?" Inuyasha asked. Rin nodded, _I couldn't just leave without telling her anyway._ "Okay, I'll go get her, I don't want this to upset the pups." Inuyasha ran back to the village.

By the time Kagome reached the meadow Rin still had not moved from her spot, she still sat staring toward the now indistinguishable horizon. The sun was setting and the ground and woods already appeared black against the magenta sky. The unique color reminding her of her Lord, she felt no tears welling up, in fact she felt nothing. She was numb. She hears Kagome long before her friend was anywhere close to her. Traveling with her Lord, and training all these years with Inuyasha and Kohaku has honed her senses, and her reflexes. She is confident she can take care of herself, on her own. When Kagome

reached her side she sat down next to her.

Kagome glanced at her friend's face, she saw the evidence of the day's tears plain all over it. Obviously whatever had happened between Rin and Sesshoumaru had devastated the poor girl. "Inuyasha says you want to leave." Kagome said, unsure if she was making a statement or asking a question.

"Yes, it is for the best." she wanted to smile slightly and using his words, but couldn't bring herself to. She thought she probably would never smile again. "But, do not worry. I fully intend to return soon, I promise. You know I can take care of myself." she added.

"I do know, but that won't stop my worrying. Do you at least know where you are going?" Kagome sensed she should not bring up Sesshoumaru directly, for fear of breaking the girl.

Rin gazed off in the direction that Sesshoumaru had gone. She sighed, "Any direction but that one," she said pointing.

Kagome sensed the deep hurt in her friend, she saw the intense pain in her eyes, even if her friend was refusing to allow herself to truly feel it. She sighed to herself. Rin was on the very cusp of womanhood, she was becoming an adult and there are some lessons you must learn the hard way. Even though she felt this girl could be her very own sister, she understood she had to let her make her own decisions, and had to let her go where she felt she must. "Very well, Rin. But, I will hold you to your promise. You must come safely back to this village."

Rin looked at her friend and nodded, "I promise."

Kagome sighed, she stood up and said, "I'll go through well and get you a bag of supplies." Rin opened her mouth to protest, but Kagome silenced her with a dark look. "Just because I'm okay with you going off on your own, doesn't mean I'm okay letting you go unprepared too. I'll be home first thing in the morning."

Rin looked at her friend and nodded. "I'll be in my tree-house packing my own essentials. I promise I won't go anywhere until you get back."

"You better not," Kagome said with a smirk. She pulled Rin to her feet, and pulled the younger girl into a hug. "See you in the morning, try to get some sleep tonight." Kagome gave Rin a final squeeze before releasing her. She turned and headed toward the village to get Asuka so she could visit her uncle and grandmother. Kagome's grandfather died shortly after Asuka was born, Kagome missed him dearly. It was less than an hour later that mother and daughter traveled to the future together.

Meanwhile, Rin strolled back to her tree-house, trailing her hands through the grass and enjoying the night. The moonlight glimmered off the grass, the calls of night birds sounded in the distance. She breathed deeply the cool night air, and buried her sadness. She felt so pitiful. _I won't cry anymore. For anyone. I am stronger than that. I don't need anyone._ With that, she resolved to harden her heart, and let neither sadness, nor joy, to touch her again. The reason she even had a life had disappeared from it, deciding on his own what was best for her, without even allowing her her opinion.

She arrived at her tree, she looked up at the small house in its branches, barely discernible in the darkness, unless you knew what you were looking for. She climbed into her house it sleep for what she believed would be the last time. She grabbed the large pack Kagome had given her for her fourteenth birthday. She started going through her things, packing only things she believed would prove themselves useful to her. She had packed her hairbrush and bathing implements, including her towel. Kagome had once made a joke that Rin never got about the importance of bringing your towel with you whenever you traveled. Rin still didn't get it, but she packed it anyway, thinking there may be some wisdom to the idea.

She was searching through her wooden chest when her hand settled on a small, cold object. It was a beautiful silver and garnet comb. Sesshoumaru had given it to her for her 17th birthday. She thought back to that day, _He was so kind to me that day, I think that's what gave me hope._ She was sitting on her roof. It was sunrise, she had felt his presence approaching in the night. She heard a slight rustle of leaves, and suddenly he was on the roof beside her. "If I were an enemy, you would be dead." he stated.

"I knew it was you." she smiled at him.

"How?"

"I just knew."

He sat down next to her. His mokomoko snaked its way around her waist, pulling her close. He breathed her scent. "Omadeto, Rin," he pulled a small gift out of the sleeve of his kimono, and handed it to her. She smiled up at him, and opened the gift. It had taken her breath away. She threw her arms around his neck, he stiffened. "Arigato, Lord Sesshoumaru!" she realized what she had done and blushing furiously she backed away and bowed her head to him, "Forgive me, My Lord, I forgot my place." He looked at her and almost smiled, his mokomoko brought her back to his side and they watched the colors of dawn fade to blue.

Rin heaved a sigh as she brought herself out of her reverie. She dropped the comb back into her chest. _The comb serves no real practical purpose._ She finished packing her bag, and hopes that whatever Kagome plans on bringing her won't be too cumbersome. She remembers seeing Kagome years ago standing with an enormous pack on her back. _I'll just have to see in the morning._ She lies down on her futon, and tries to sleep. It is several hours later that her mind calms enough to sleep.

End Notes: Thank you for reading, please let me know if you like the direction this is going so far...

Youki- Demonic power, or an evil aura

Youkai- A Demon

Daiyoukai- Demon Lord

Kamaitachi- Japanese folklore featuring a trio "sickle-clawed" demon weasels, who knock down, scratch up, and then medicate their victims so that they're left with painful wounds that aren't bleeding. Hence why the weasels didn't kill anyone and why Lord Sesshoumaru allowed the two elder brothers to escape.

Omadeto- It's a way of saying congratulations, it is used for many occasions not just birthdays.

Arigato- An informal way of saying thank you, its like just saying "Thanks." You could also just say "Domo" to be even more informal.


	4. Chapter 4

Rin woke long before dawn. She sat in the corner of one-room tree-house, sharpening her blades, her tachi and her kaiken. They were not demonic blades so they did not have names of their own. When she was satisfied with the sharpness of her weapons she slid them back into their sheaths. She tucked her kaiken into the sleeve of her kimono. She stood, leaving her short sword on the floor. She crossed the room to her window and then climbed onto her roof. She looked at the moon slowly setting and, gathered her long dark hair into a ponytail which she tied with a red ribbon. She pulled her kaiken from her sleeve and held her hair out. The ten-inch blade easily sliced through her tresses. She was left holding a long mass of silky dark hair tied together with the ribbon, her short hair quickly curled up around her ears, free from the weight of years of growth. She looked at the hair in her hand and sighed, she set it on the roof and climbed back through her window.

She picked up the bag containing all her supplies, it was nearly full. Then, she picked up her tachi and put it in its place at her hip. She stuck her head out her door, listening intently, when she could neither hear nor sense anything she jumped to the ground, landing softly. She sat down at the base of the tree to watch the sun rise.

The hours passed and the sun crept closer and closer to its zenith. Rin rose to her feet and started off in the direction of the village, figuring Kagome would stop there first. She turned out to be right and ran into Kagome about halfway to the village. Her friend was struggling to keep her balance under the weight of the enormous pack she was carrying. _Oh no_, Rin groaned inwardly. "Kagome," she began tentatively, "You don't expect me to carry all of that, do you?"

Kagome set down the pack, embarrassed. "I know its a lot, but really, I used to carry this much stuff when I was your age. All of this will be useful to you, I'm sure."

"You had Inuyasha to help you. I will be on my own, I can't be too weighed down in case I get into a fight. Let's go through some of this stuff and separate only the truly useful." She really didn't want to do this, but she couldn't turn away her friend's offer of help. She didn't want to appear ungrateful, she just wanted to be on her way. This village held her past, not her future.

Kagome started pulling things out of the pack. Immediately, Rin spotted packages of "future food" as Inuyasha called it. "That is not necessary." Rin said pointing. "Take those to your family. I can hunt and forage for my own food, I always have."

"I know but some of these are really good for you if you can't find your own food, at least take one, just in case." Rin looked at her friend, she could plainly see how worried Kagome was.

"Okay, if it will ease your worries." Kagome smiled and selected a bag of trail mix, which she dropped into Rin's pack. She then pulled out a small dark green bag. "This is a tent." She pulled it out of the bag, and showed Rin how to set it up, it was small and Rin just barely fit inside. The outside of the tent had a camouflage pattern on it and was ruffled like leaves in places. Rin, though she hadn't expected any such luxuries, thought it would come in useful when it rained. She folded it up herself and slid it back into the pouch, then she dropped it into her pack. After about another hour of going through the larger pack Rin had selected a few more items she thought would be useful, and, her pack brimming, she looked to her friend and said "Arigato, Kagome-chan" She hugged her friend. "Say goodbye to Inuyasha and the kids for me."

"I knew you wouldn't come say it yourself!" Inuyasha's voice broke from the trees. All three kids zoomed out of the woods and wrapped their arms around Rin's legs.

"You're really leaving, huh?" Asuka asked, looking up at Rin, who nodded. "I'll miss you lots and lots" Asuka said, looking at Rin solemnly.

"Lots and lots!" chimed the twins. The children's eyes started welling up with tears.

Rin looked down at the children, and smiled softly. "I will miss all of you very much," she said. "I love you all, and will be back before you know it, so no crying, okay?" Asuka sniffled, and nodded, but the twins being so young, once they started crying it was much harder to stop. Rin bent down and hugged them close. She lifted them up and handed them to their parents, who brought Rin close for one last hug. When all the farewells were exchanged, Rin headed East. When she got to the edge of the forest she looked back at her friends for the last time and waved. Her friends waved back, and she headed into the forest.

Rin moved silently between trees and around bushes, over fallen logs and piles of leaves. She stopped, and listened for any movement in the surrounding forest. She heard nothing, she also could not sense any youki. She lay down in a pile of leaves and rolled around vigorously, in an attempt to mask her scent and blend into the woods better. She traveled steadily eastward as the sun started to lower toward the horizon. She slowed her pace when she heard a scurrying in the underbrush. She silently moved so she would be in the path of the creature as it ran through the forest. It leapt out of the bush in front of her. She caught the rabbit easily in mid-air, and swiftly broke its neck. _I am sorry small friend. Thank you for your life and my meal, _ she thought.

While the coney cooked over a small fire, Rin set up her tent in a thicket of bushes, for the best concealment. She ate her dinner, then smothered the fire with dirt. When she was satisfied that the fire wouldn't blaze again and give away her position she crawled into her tent, curled up, and fell asleep.


	5. Chapter 5

He arrived at his palace at dusk, he breezed past his guards without a word, or any acknowledgement at all. He continued through long hallways and, past closed doors, until he reached his office. He ordered a servant to have tea brought as he entered the darkened room. He lit a lamp and set it on his table and sat down. He looked to the basket of scrolls next to the table, he examined the seals and selected one. His mother had been busy while he was gone. He cracked the seal and smoothed the scroll, it was from Lord Shouhiko a well-to-do Tengu youkai. He was the father of two, reportedly beautiful daughters, and the message said that his family would be delighted to attend a feast at the Lord of the West's palace. _Mother,_ Sesshoumaru sighed. _ How many of these scrolls say the same?_

He opened a few more, just to confirm his suspicion. _All the same day? Oh Gods, what is that woman planning?_ He took a moment to sense her out, and make sure she was nearby. When he had located her, he stood and gracefully headed in her direction. She was strolling through one of the gardens, waiting for him, no doubt, when he approached. "Good evening, Mother," he said in a low growl.

"Good evening, Sesshoumaru, is something the matter?" she asked, innocently.

He thrust several scrolls at her and demanded, "What is the meaning of this?"

"What ever do you mean, dear? I'm just throwing a party."

"You invited every noble family with an un-mated female in the land!"

"I invited _every_ noble family in the land whether they had a female or not, if you had taken the time to read _all_ the scrolls you would know that." she sneered, "You finding a female you can mate with, and give me a little grandpup, is just an added bonus.

"Hn." Sesshoumaru turned and strode back to his office without another word. He spent the next several days filling out papers and communicating with his generals.

l-l-l-l-l-l

Rin awoke just before dawn. She dressed in an outfit she had altered so fighting would be easier. It was a light green kimono with a light blue and pink flower pattern across it. She had shortened the hem so it only went just past her knees, both sides were slit to the waist. She wore black leggings underneath, and black boots. The sleeves on her kimono were long to hide her kaiken. Her obi was a darker shade of green, with the same pattern as her kimono.

When she was dressed, she crawled out of her tent and folded it up. She put it in her pack and pulled out an onigiri she had packed as rations. She quickly ate her breakfast and hoisted her pack. She started walking toward the sunrise.

Her first day passed uneventfully. She stopped for lunch by a stream, and caught a few fish, which she cooked over a small fire. She wrapped up the leftovers for dinner, and continued walking. She did not stop until after dark. The tent was easy to put up and she could do it in the dark. She wanted to be exhausted when she lay down so her mind couldn't keep her awake. She ate her leftover fish and another rice ball, then curled up an fell asleep.

The next day as she was walking she felt youki approaching her swiftly. She drew her blades and was faced with a wind sprite, surrounded by swirling winds. It zoomed at her and buffeted her with strong winds, it took all her strength to hold both weapons. She slid her kaiken back into her sleeve and gripped her tachi with both hands. When the sprite was close enough she swung with all her might. Her blade sliced through the winds and pinged against something. She looked and saw a shiny stone floating in the air where the sprite had been. The place where the blade touched the stone started to glow and the stone was absorbed into the sword. The sword vibrated gently, then she heard a voice in her mind, _My name is Junbuu, the wind sprite's soul has given life to this sword._

A little while later as she was walking, she heard the sounds of battle. She cautiously headed in the direction of the sound. She saw and enormous bear demon attacking a small group of what looked to be wolf demons. The wolves were loosing, two of the males were already dead, one of them looked to be the leader. Not good, Rin knew the leader would have been the strongest of the group. She looked at the wolves, there were two young males an elderly female, and a male child.

The bear charged the two males, Rin knew if she didn't act quickly they would be shredded by the bear's claws. She scurried up a tree, she ran along the branches until she was above the bear. She swiftly drew both blades, and jumped onto the bear's back. She sliced her blades across the bear's hide in precise patterns. She jumped down off the bear and stood between him and the wolves. She brought Junbuu across swiftly calling on the sword's power, a strong wind slammed into the bear. The huge demon was impaled on some tree trunks that were split in the fight before Rin arrived.

Rin turned to the wolves, her sword held at the ready. The wolves bowed respectfully toward her, clearly impressed. The youngest male ran up to her, he had black hair, just past his ears, and golden eyes. "Wow, that was amazing! How did you get so strong, Shidousha?"

"Leader?" She asked quizzically. "What do you mean?"

"Our leader was killed by the bear, since you killed the bear and saved us, you have proven yourself the strongest of us," one of the older males said. Rin looked at him, he had the same eyes as the young boy, but his dark hair was much longer and slightly tinged red. He looked her up and down. "You're only a human." he stated, amazed. He bowed to her, "Where are we headed, Leader?" he asked.


	6. Chapter 6

The conversation between Sesshoumaru and Kaiko hadn't gone unheard. One of the Tengu daughters, Ritsu had been secretly following Sesshoumaru since she had arrived. Ritsu was able to go undetected. The fan she carried, not only minimized the appearance of her nose, but also, hid her scent, and her youki. Her fan was about eighteen inches long, and steel, the outside edge was wickedly sharp. Needless to say, it was her weapon of choice. It was her constant companion.

As for Ritsu herself, with her fan hiding her nose, she was quite breathtaking, at least in her own opinion. She was almost as tall as Lord Sesshoumaru. Her hair was dark purple, shoulder length, and fanned out around her face in spiky layers. Her kimono was the same shade of teal as her eyes, and her obi was the same color as her hair. The kimono had a lovely pink and green pattern on it.

Ritsu wanted Sesshoumaru. He had power, wealth, and as an added bonus, he was damn sexy. She had tried everything to get him to notice her. Everything short of actually putting her fan down to let him feel her power, for that would mean revealing her huge, ugly nose. Her sister didn't seem as interested in Sesshoumaru, which was a good thing, she was one less rival. That horrid neko youkai was another matter. Ristu had been watching _that one_ too. Fortunately, it looked like she had taken herself out of the contest.

When she heard Sesshoumaru was in love with a human she was enraged. She would follow him, she decided, and see what was so special about this girl. When he flew away, she trailed silently behind him. When he stopped at the odd tree-hut thing, she sensed that the human no longer lived there. When Sesshoumaru went to the village, she searched out the scent of the human and started out on the trail.

She caught up with the human just after dawn. She was surprised to see the human with a pack of wolf youkai, she wondered what Lord Sesshoumaru would think of this? She knew she had a good lead on him, she decided to watch the girl and her wolves for a little while.

That morning, Rin and the wolves ate a quick breakfast and headed off, they were hoping to get to their destination within the next two days. Today, Atsushi walked alongside Rin, at the head of the group. She thought this was odd, but she didn't comment on it; instead, she chattered amicably with him about the weather, and the flowers and things that she liked. He smiled and nodded and responded to her words as they went. They were completely unaware of any danger.

They broke out of the tree cover, out into a meadow. Rin saw someone standing across the meadow, it looked like a woman, but she couldn't be sure at this distance. She didn't sense any youki so she didn't think it was a demon. As they approached Rin was better able to make out the strange woman. This woman seemed to be as tall as her lord.

Atsushi stopped. Rin looked at him, "What's wrong?" she looked concerned.

"She is," he answered. "I can't smell her, and surely she's a demon, but I don't sense any power from her at all."

"I was thinking the same thing," she confirmed.

"Come forward, human girl," the strange woman commanded.

"What do you want her for?" Atsushi yelled, stepping in front of Rin, protectively.

"I need to see for myself, this human who stole a great daiyoukai's heart," the woman replied.

Rin gasped at the words. _Does that mean-_ she broke off the thought. Atsushi looked at her, confused. Rin stepped around him, and faced the woman, herself. "Who are you?" Rin asked.

"Not that it concerns you, I am Ritsu. I plan to make Sesshoumaru my mate," she sneered. "You are a pitiful human, you do not deserve the great Lord of the West. Now you shall die." She drew her fan. The wolves saw the menacing gesture and moved to protect their leader, they were afraid of her power because they could not sense it. They were right to be afraid. Ritsu slashed her fan across and razor-sharp blades of wind snaked toward the charging wolves. Koburo and another wolf were in the way of the blades. They couldn't get out of the way fast enough, and were sliced to pieces.

Rin was shocked. She couldn't believe that had just happened. She drew Junbuu, and quickly called on the sword's power. The strongest winds she had yet created thundered out toward the demoness. Ritsu, however, swept her fan in front of her, and laughed as Rin's wind was easily countered.

Ritsu then created a wind of her own. Rin quickly jabbed Junbuu into the ground and held on tight. Atsushi and the other wolves were blown back. Suddenly, Ritsu had Rin by the throat. She folded her fan as she looked the frightened, struggling girl in the eyes. Ritsu extended her claws, and raked them across Rin's throat and chest. Rin started gushing blood all over the front of her shredded kimono, she collapsed to the ground. As she struggled to hold onto consciousness she felt her Lord's energy approaching.

Ritsu knew Sesshoumaru could smell the girl's blood, and that he would be there very soon. She slipped into the trees nearby, to watch, not worrying about being detected. Unfortunately for her she still had Rin's blood on her claws, as Sesshoumaru broke through the trees her smelled her and swiped Bakusaiga across, slicing Ritsu apart with a wave of energy.

Sesshoumaru fell to his knees beside Rin. He lifted her into his arms, she opened her eyes, weakly. "Lord Sesshoumaru," she whispered.

"Rin," he said huskily.

"I always loved you," she placed her hand on his cheek.

"I do love you, Rin. I was coming back for you," he knew she was dying, she had already lost too much blood. The demoness had cut major arteries, and if he tried to move her, she would die anyway. He knew he couldn't bring her back this time. He didn't want to live without her, he had just decided they would be together! He bit his tongue, and he leaned down and kissed her. He grazed her tongue and their blood mingled. He knew it wouldn't save her, but he hoped it would bind their souls together.

"Come back for me, " he whispered to her, "I'll wait for you," he kissed her again.

She smiled weakly, then pulled back and started coughing. His heart ached when he saw her cough up blood. She tightened her grip on him slightly, and then went limp. The spark faded from her eyes, and her body was lifeless in his arms.

He sat there, unmoving. For the first time in his life, he was unsure what to do. He felt something he had never felt before, and reached up to find a single drop of water on his face. _Could it be a tear?_ he wondered. He wanted to get up and lay waste to the entire countryside, or maybe, to go back to the palace and slay the entire Tengu family for their daughter's actions. However, he knew that Rin would be opposed to either action. Instead, He bundled her into his arms, and headed back to his half-brother's village.


	7. Chapter 7

After burying their pack leader and the other two dead wolves, they prepared to leave. Atsushi took the lead, as scout, his job was to watch for danger and to lead the way to where his pack had gotten split up. Koburo carried Akako in his arms, she looked like she weighed less than a feather. Tsuyoshi followed Koburo closely. Rin took up the rear, guarding against attacks from behind. She had Junbuu in her right hand, at the ready should she need it. She also wanted to spend more time growing accustomed to the new feel and power of her sword. She had always secretly wanted a named sword.

They approached the place Atsushi had last seen the rest of the pack. There was a lot of blood, most of it smelled like the bear cubs, but there was a lot of wolf blood too. Koburo set the Pack Mother down on a nearby tree trunk. Rin set Tsuyoshi on the trunk next to the old lady. She looked at the young wolf seriously, "You keep your eyes on her and make sure she stays safe, Okay Tsuyoshi?" The younger wolf looked into Rin's eyes and nodded solemnly.

"I swear, I'll keep her safe." the boy said.

"Good boy, if anything happens call for us," she looked at Atsushi and Koburo, "we'll have to find out where the rest went from here. Let's look around and see if we can find anything." The two wolves nodded and they split up to see what they could find.

Rin saw spatters of blood and followed the trail to its source, the mauled body of a wolf youkai. Her face paled and her knees weakened at the gruesome sight. The wolf's chest had been ripped open, the ribcage broken, exposing the heart and lungs. The body lay splayed at the base of a tree, its arms were positioned as though the wolf had been trying to put its entrails back in its body when it died. She let out a weak whimper. Fortunately Atsushi heard the small sound, he was by her side in an instant.

When he saw the mutilated body Atsushi fell to his knees. He could not believe what he was seeing. The demon's face was badly disfigured, but Atsushi knew the scent well. It was his best friend, Aki, they had grown up together. Atsushi clenched his fists, and held back the tears. He called Koburo over, and together they dug a deep hole and buried their fallen friend. They continued looking and found one more dead wolf demon, and finally, the two dead bear youkai cubs. They buried their friend, and found the direction the remaining three wolves went, before heading back to Tsuyoshi and the Pack Mother.

When they got to the fallen tree Akako was sleeping. Tsuyoshi still sat alert, and looked visibly relieved when the three broke through the trees to report what they had found. Rin walked up to the Pack Mother and placed a hand on her shoulder. Akako opened her cloudy eyes with a start. "Oh dear! You startled me!"

"I'm sorry Pack Mother," Rin said apologetically, "We found the direction we need to go, it seems there were only three other survivors."

"You said 'we', does that mean you'll stay with us?" Akako asked.

"Well, I couldn't just leave you now. My conscience would never let me rest," Rin smiled, "Lets go a little way further, away from the scent of blood, and set up camp for the night. Now we know which way to go, we can head out first thing in the morning." The wolves nodded and this time Atsushi picked up Akako, Rin took the lead with Tsuyoshi, and Koburo took up the rear.

l-l-l-l-l-l-l

He could smell them coming. The first guests to arrive. It was just after noon on the day after he met the-hopefully final-tailor. He went to his audience hall and sat on his cushion on the dias directly across from the entrance to the room. The wall behind him was hung with the crest of his clan. On the walls to either side were huge murals depicting, in minute detail the surrounding lands, as though they were truly nothing more than windows.

It was a few more minutes before his herald announced the arrival of Lord and Lady Shouhiko and their two daughter's Ritsu and Suka. The family entered the room and approached the dais. When they were in front of Sesshoumaru they bowed deeply, before taking their seats on cushions across from him. Sesshoumaru surveyed the tengu on front of him, he knew a little about tengu. He knew that without their magic fans they can not assume human form. He also knew their true demon form is that of a giant chicken. He certainly was not interested in either sister.

"Welcome Shouhiko family, to the Western Palace. I trust you will enjoy your stay here, make yourselves at home, and if you need anything at all do not hesitate to ask any of the servants. Please instruct any servants you brought with you to report to the servants quarters so they may be informed of everything that may be expected of them."

"Hold on, you're going to be ordering our servants around?" the Lord asked.

"Of course not, I just want to make sure everything goes smoothly, and I believe all servants should be informed so we can cut down on any mishaps." The Lord of the West replied coolly.

"Of course, My Lord, forgive me."

"Of course. If you head down the hall to the left the servants will direct you to your rooms. You may also leave your servants in their care, they will be sent back to you when they have been familiarized with the palace, and grounds. And of course any duties they may be expected to preform." He dismissed them with a nod, as his herald entered the room to announce the arrival of another family. The rest of the day passed in much the same way. His Mother took over for him late in the afternoon. He decided to take the opportunity to get away from the noise and confusion for a little while. He exited the palace and jumped over the wall, startling the guards.

He wandered through the forest nearby, he had been feeling on edge a lot lately. _It must be because of this damned feast._ He found a small stream nearby and followed it a ways. He emerged from the trees in a large field of flowers. He looked around, it hadn't changed much. He used to bring Rin here when she was small. He walked to the large tree in the center of the field. He looked up at it, feeling calmer already. He sat down at its base, and remembered a time when Rin was much younger.

_She had chased Jaken through the field and danced among the flowers for hours. "Look Lord Sesshoumaru! I made you a flower crown!" she held it up to him, smiling, "Do you like it?"_

_ He took the flimsy chain of flowers and looked at the strange child. He didn't want to make her sad, so he said "Of course, Rin."_

_ "Will you wear it?"_

_ "No, I will not."_

_ The child's eyes began to fill with tears. "Lord Sesshoumaru doesn't like Rin's gift?" she sniffled._

_ "I did not say that. This Sesshoumaru simply does not wear flower chains," he said, drying her tears with his mokomoko. The sun was setting, and they sat under this very tree. He could tell she was getting sleepy, and he was about to lift her up and set her on A-Un, when she snuggled close to him and whispered, "I love you, Lord Sesshoumaru."_

_ He was surprised at this, but took it as nothing more than a child's love for her guardian. Long after she had fallen asleep he put her on A-Un and continued on his way._

Sesshoumaru snapped out of his memories, and realized it was after dark. He had to hurry and get back to the palace, and hoped he hadn't missed dinner. It wouldn't do for the host not to show up on the first night of the celebrations. About half of the thirty-two families attending had shown up already. He flew back to his palace, and went to his room to change his clothes before dinner.


	8. Chapter 8

The next morning, Atsushi left the camp early, before the sun rose. He followed the scent of a deer through the woods. He could tell he was getting close. He slowed his pace and crept through the foliage. The doe came into view as he rounded a stand of birch trees, it was grazing on some sweet new grass, and facing away from him. He crept up behind it, it never noticed the danger it was in. Suddenly, Atsushi struck, the doe never knew what happened. He cleaned out the guts and carried the carcass back to the campsite. "Breakfast," he called. Slowly the others woke, stretching and rubbing their eyes.

Rin looked at the carcass, and said, "Its not cooked."

Atsushi looked at her curiously, "Oh yeah, I forgot humans don't eat their meat raw." he looked slightly abashed. "I'm sorry, Leader. I'll hurry and get you some firewood." He turned and disappeared into the woods. He returned moments later with his arms stacked with wood, and before long he had a fire built, and choice pieces of venison roasting for her.

Rin was surprised at how considerate Atsushi was being of her. She smiled, "Thank you, Atsushi, that was very kind of you."

"Of course, you're our leader, you always get served first." He smiled back at her. Then he began serving the others raw portions of the deer. The Pack Mother was served the deer's heart, so she may be granted its strength for the journey.

After Atsushi served Rin her food, he placed some of the remainder of the deer around the fire to cook. Rin noticed this, and wondered what he was doing. She asked him.

"I'm cooking some of this meat so it won't spoil and we can take it with us, in case we can't stop later. We prefer raw meat, but cooking, or smoking it is sometimes the only practical way to store it. We usually have dried rations with us for long journeys, and to help us through the winter. No one likes rancid meat." He had a disgusted look on his face, Rin giggled a little.

"I wouldn't imagine so," she replied, "I never really thought about it before. I never really knew what demons ate. I just knew they didn't eat the same stuff as humans."

"That's not exactly true. We eat raw foods most of the time. Most of us don't eat fruits or vegetables, and some of us eat humans." He looked at her as he said this, then he smiled, "Don't worry, we don't eat humans." He indicated the other wolves. "Our tribe has always lived in peace with the humans who live in our territory." He looked around at the group, he observed that everyone had finished eating, and said, "Well, are we ready to find some lost wolves?"

The others nodded, and brushing off dirt, followed the scent trail of the other wolves. Atsushi had the strongest nose so he took the lead. They were heading mostly east, but slightly north. They traveled this way for a few hours, before the trail began to look fresh. They even found where the other wolves had camped the night before. "They left here, after we left our camp. They must think we're dead, or they would be looking for us, and not heading straight for the gathering. They're probably worrying about telling everyone the Pack Mother was lost. We need to pick up the pace," he said, "If we hurry we may be able to meet up with them before dark." He looked at Rin for her approval.

Rin was beginning to wonder if she really was the leader, Atsushi seemed to be doing just fine. She thought that she may leave them when they met up with the rest of the wolves, if she thought they would be okay without her, of course. Rin looked at Atsushi and nodded. "Don't worry about me, I can keep up." she said. She had had to keep up with Sesshoumaru, after all.

"Okay, let's head out" He said. He started out at a steady trot, the others falling into step behind him. Koburo carried Akako on his back today so he could run more easily. After about an hour Rin noticed Tsuyoshi tiring. He is still a child, after all, we can't expect him to keep up this pace. She stopped in front of him. "Tsuyoshi, climb on my back."

The others stopped surprised, "Are you sure?" Tsuyoshi asked.

"Of course," she replied, "I'm not even tired yet." It was true, she was barely winded. She smiled back at him, "Come on, its okay."

The young demon climbed on Rin's back, and they continued on their way once more. Every now and then Tsuyoshi would get down and run until he was tired. They stopped twice to take a break, have some water, and snack on some of the meat from earlier. They could tell they were gaining on the other wolves. Even Rin could plainly see the fresh tracks.

An hour before sunset they heard the voices of the other three wolves, they sprinted the remaining distance as Atsushi called out to them. They were greeted with pleased surprise, and reverence for safely bringing the Pack Mother. Rin was introduced as the new leader, which was met with incredulous looks from the three males. Tsuyoshi was quick to explain what had happened in great detail, clearly in awe of his new leader. The others were clearly impressed with the story, and bowed to Rin, accepting her as their new leader.

They made camp near a river, Rin and Atsushi went down to the river to catch fish for everyone. Kuboro filled the others in on everything that had happened in the last few days, and confirmed Tsuyoshi's story. The wolves who hadn't seen Rin in action were still a bit skeptical, but they accepted it. They figured they would get their proof sooner or later.

At the river bank Rin took off her boots, then tied her kimono around her waist, and tied the sleeves up near her shoulders, to keep them out of the water. Her leggings went down just past her knees, she rolled them up so they wouldn't get too wet. She reached up to tie her hair up, but remembered she had cut it off.

Atsushi watched her preparations, admiring her beauty. When she looked like she was about to step into the water he came up beside her. He grabbed her hand and smiled at her. "Careful, these rocks are slippery," he said.

Sure enough, she nearly slipped at her next step. He reached his other arm out and caught her. She was blushing wildly when she looked up into his eyes. "Thank you," she stammered.

He smiled down at her. He wanted to kiss her. Badly. He leaned in closer to her. She saw him lean toward her, and instantly knew what he wanted, only she didn't want that. She hardly knew the guy, and certainly didn't want her first kiss to be with someone she hardly knew. She gasped, and tried to take a step back. He heard her, and felt her move back, so he opened his eyes. "What's wrong?" he asked.

"I hardly know you, Atsushi. You can't just go around kissing girls you hardly know. You're lucky I didn't slap you."

"So if we get to know each other better you'll let me kiss you?"

Rin rolled her eyes and splashed him, "I never said that!" she exclaimed, giggling.


	9. Chapter 9

The next day Sesshoumaru rose to the light of dawn. He had excused himself early from the festivities the night before. He really was in no mood for any of this, but knew his mother would never leave him alone until he had chosen a mate. He left his room and headed to meet with his mother and Kumokuro. His mother was beaming, "I just love it!" she exclaimed to Kumokuro, as Sesshoumaru entered the room.

"I am so happy my Lady is pleased. I can only hope the young lord will be as satisfied."

"Let's see it, and I'll tell you." Sesshoumaru stated as he sat down.

Kumokuro held up the smooth flowing material for Sesshoumaru to view. The kimono and hakama were both a very pale shade of teal, so pale in fact, that in a certain light it could easily be confused as white or even silver, like his hair. The crests were the same as the kimono he usually wore only the markings were magenta like his demon marks. He had to admit he liked the effect.

Sesshoumaru stood, and drew Bakusaiga. Kumokuro's eyes widened. "My Lord doesn't like it?" he asked alarmed.

"You said your silk is as strong as any armor. I wish to test the truth of your words."

"Of course, My Lord." Kumokuro held the garment a safe distance away from his body, and did his best to flinch when Lord Sesshoumaru swept his blade across the cloth. The fabric did not slice or tear, and the tailor behind it was unharmed as well. They showed no hint that anything had just happened.

"Hn." Sesshoumaru narrowed his eyes at it, he was never comfortable without his armor, but this would do. "Very well, it seems you spoke the truth. I am satisfied." He said as he took the garment from the tailor.

He spent the rest of the day greeting the last guests to arrive. He attended dinner, and barely put up with all of the females practically throwing themselves at him. He excused himself early again, saying he still had a lot of work to do.

The next day was the day of the feast. His mother was running the servants into the ground, making sure everything would be absolutely perfect for tonight. Sesshoumaru was strolling through the gardens, keeping an eye on everything, when a Lady appeared in the path ahead of him. She smiled demurely at him, and held out her hand as he approached. After a few moments of him just staring at her hand she withdrew it. "You have quite a lovely palace. I especially love these gardens." She said, fluttering her eyelashes at him. "My name is Kaiko."

Kaiko was a Neko youkai. She had vivid green eyes and flaming red hair, which she wore in pigtails that hung to her waist in either side. She flashed him a toothy grin, showing dainty fangs, as she hooked his arm with hers, "I would love it if you would show me around, this garden is so large, I wouldn't want to get lost out here."

Sesshoumaru sighed, but decided to tolerate it. She was kind of pretty, and he didn't mind her scent. He had never had a dislike for cats, though he had always thought they were pretty useless. They strolled through the garden, chatting idly, passing time until the feast. Before long some of the other females present noticed the attention Kaiko was getting and decided they needed to join the two on their stroll to keep the playing feild even. Soon the group turned into a procession, numbering over a dozen. Sesshoumaru would never admit to being claustrophobic, but he had to get out of the press of bodies. He excused himself from the clingy females, explaining he needed to prepare for the feast, and that they should too.

Back in his room, he dressed in his new armor, then sat down to clear his head for a bit before the celebration started. When it came time for the feast to begin he stood and left his room. He headed down the hall to the main dining hall. Many of the guests had already arrived, fortunately his mother had thought to assign seats, or there would most likely have been blood spilled by the females trying to get a seat next to him.

He took his seat, and waited for everyone to arrive and take theirs, as well. When all the guests had arrived, Sesshoumaru greeted them all, "I am very pleased to have everyone gathered here. I hope that this can be the first of many steps to bring peace to the land. I also hope all of you enjoy your stay here," he raised his glass and said, "Let us feast"

With those words the servants emerged from the kitchen carrying platters of a variety of foods. There were platters of raw seasoned meats ranging from, fish to fowl, and from rabbit to venison to beef. Some were seared lightly to bring out certain flavors in the meat. Other platters carried sweetbreads and pate's made from various organs. The Lady Mother had commissioned the best chefs in all the lands to cater the event. The guests were surprised at the volume and variety of foods available. The West was obviously prospering if they could afford to throw such a luxurious feast.

When everyone had eaten their fill, the Lady Mother signaled the musicians to play. Slowly, the Lords and Ladies moved to the dance floor. The young Lords and Ladies, still sat. They were waiting for Lord Sesshoumaru to make the first move. He decided the safest course would to be to give the first dance to his mother.

"She was quite surprised, but made no comment. She took his hand and allowed herself to be led out onto the dance floor. When the dance ended, he spotted Kaiko nearby, no doubt she had planned that. He approached her and offered her the next dance. She, of course, accepted. The song had a moderate tempo, not too slow, but not overly fast either. She was very graceful, which he had expected from a Neko youkai. She smiled at him, and gave him a wink, as though she knew there were other places he'd rather be.

When that song ended, he danced with a few other females. He didn't pay much attention to any of them. It was after about an hour that the musicians stopped to take a break. He took the opportunity to slip out into the garden. He walked deep into the garden. He didn't understand why he wasn't attracted to any of the females presented to him. His thoughts drifted to Rin, and that's when it hit him. He had feelings for her. The weak and fragile human. The child he took in and protected. The one who healed his heart, and allowed him to feel things. The poor child he had abandoned. The same one who had been abandon by her own people. _She probably hates me now. The way I just left her there. I should go check on her._

He heard footsteps and was brought sharply out of his thoughts. "Hey," a voice purred. He looked toward the sound, it was Kaiko. "You look a million miles away." she commented.

"Hn."

"You don't want any of this, do you?" she asked, and without waiting for a response. "I've been watching you. You don't smile, or show any emotion, but deep in your eyes I can see your sadness." she moved in front of him and looked into his eyes. "You were just thinking about something painful, no? It shows fresh in your eyes. You are in love, aren't you?"

His eyes widened slightly, "What are you talking about?"

"I've been there," she smiled sadly, "I bet she's human too?" He took half a step back, "Is she still alive?" she asked him.

He just nodded. "Then go to her, fool! If she loves you too you can have the most wonderful thing our kind can know! If my love were still alive, I would not be here right now." She said the last part softly. "And don't worry about her making you weak, if anything you'll be able to fight harder if you have something to protect."

His eyes widened at those words. Something to protect. He bowed to her slightly, "Thank you for your wise words, Lady."

"No need for thanks, just get out of here before anyone realizes you're gone. I'll leave too," she winked. "I'll be your cover" she gave him a wistful smile, and he smirked slightly.

"Thanks again." he said, and then he was off. He stopped back in his room quickly to get Bakusaiga, then flew toward his half-brother's village.


	10. Chapter 10

Between the two of them, Rin and Atsushi caught about a dozen fish. Atsushi was impressed with the ease with which Rin caught fish in her bare hands. When they had caught enough, they headed back to the camp. Rin spears her fish through with sharpened sticks and set them near the fire to roast. Rin sat by the fire to wait. She started thinking about what Atsushi had tried to do. Did he think she liked him? Had she given him any reason to think that? _Did _she have feelings for him? No, she decided not currently anyway. She hardly knew the guy, though she couldn't deny he was attractive. She was definitely not over Sesshoumaru yet, she had been trying hard not to think of him the last few days. It had helped that she had gotten mixed up with the wolves, because when she was distracted she wasn't thinking about him.

Rin was brought out of her thoughts, when she noticed Atsushi moving to sit next to her. "You're beautiful when you're lost in thought. Can I ask what you were thinking about?" he asked.

Rin blushed and looked away. "Nothing, really. I was just trying to figure some things out." She looked toward the fire, and was saved from having to elaborate, when she noticed her fish were ready. She grabbed them with her fingers and placed them in a wooden bowl. She sat back down, blowing on her fish to cool them down.

Atsushi didn't press her. He was confident that she would be his eventually. The wolf pack relaxed around the fire, chatting and joking until the sun was fully set. Then they went to bed.

They woke at dawn the next day, had a quick breakfast of dried venison. Rin found some raspberry bushes nearby, and ate a few handfuls. Then, they packed up their camp and headed toward the place the wolves gathered. As Rin had never been there, Atsushi took the lead. The other's took turns carrying the Pack Mother.

They traveled roughly East for the whole day. "How far is this place, Atsushi?" Rin asked.

"It will take several days still before we can get there." he answered.

She didn't respond. She hadn't necessarily planned on going this far. Though, she hadn't really planned where she was going anyway. She decided to stay quiet and accept it. She wanted to see the celebration. It was bound to be a wonderful thing. She smiled slightly to herself.

Suddenly, the group hear a snarl. Crashing footsteps were heard, thundering through the forest toward them. Rin drew her blades, and turned to face the sound. The wolf carrying the Pack Mother moved behind the group.

Suddenly, through the trees crashed an enormous lizard youkai, its tounge flicking between its teeth, tasting the air. Rin stood her ground, facing off with the gargantuan beast. It slashed its claws at her, she dodged out of the way, then jumped onto its arm as it slashed across. Then Rin ran up the creatures arm and stood on its shoulder. She sliced at its head with precise maneuvers of her blades. When the creature swung its arm to swipe her off she ran around its back. She sliced up the other side of its head, before jumping off and calling on her sword's true power. She swiped the blade across and slammed the lizard with the full force of her wind. The lizard disintegrated with the sheer power behind the blow.

Rin turned to face the wolves. Their faces registered nothing but shock. How could this human woman hold so much power? They all bowed to her, and truly accepted her as leader. Rin blushed, "Okay, lets get going."

They traveled the rest of the day. When it started getting dark, they set up a camp, and some of the males went out to hunt. They came back about an hour later, to a cheery fire. The hunter's had managed to catch four pheasants. They handed one to Rin to pluck the feathers, then Atsushi took it from her, and using his claws, he cleaned out the giblets and cut off a sizable portion to cook for herself.

After dinner, they sat around the fire and chatted for a while. The wolves told stories of past gatherings, they described raucous partying all hours of the day and night for many days. Apparently, the great gathering had no set amount of days for celebration, they just partied until they got bored of it. Younger wolves liked to compete for who would be the last to leave. Rin sat and happily listened to the stories, and joined in the laughter, until she was so tired she could barely hold her head up. She excused herself and went to bed.

l-l-l-l-l-l-l

When Sesshoumaru got close to Rin's tree-house he sensed that she wasn't there. He landed on the roof. He could smell her, he looked down and saw her long, beautiful hair, tied with a ribbon and sitting on the roof. He leaned down and picked it up. _What does this mean? Why would she cut all her hair off?_ He thought about how he left her, saying they'd never see each other again, and that she should try to live like a normal human. Maybe she had moved into the village and that's why her tree-house smelled abandoned. _But, that doesn't explain her hair._ He tucked Rin's hair into his kimono.

He decided to enter her home to see if he could find anything out. He saw that many of her things were still there, only a few kimonos, her bathing supplies, and a few other odds and ends seemed to be missing. He found the comb he had given her. He didn't show it but he was a little hurt that she had just left it here. _I deserve that. _It was obvious that she hadn't moved out. She had left, abandoning her belongings to go who knows where.

He knew two people who might know where she had gone. He went to Inuyasha's house. He knew his half-brother had sensed his approach. He didn't bother knocking, he just waited outside. Within a few moments Inuyasha and Kagome were dressed and outside. "Where is she?" he asked calmly, though truly, he was anything but.

"She left the day after you left her. She said she was going East," Inuyasha answered.

"She looked like her heart had been crushed," Kagome added. "She cried the whole day after you left her, you creep!"

Sesshoumaru merely narrowed his eyes at her, before gliding toward the East, he was going after her. At the edge of the woods he caught her scent faintly, fortunately it had not rained. He went a little way before he found the pile of leaves she had rolled in. _She's quite intelligent._ He was going to have a harder time tracking her now. Fortunately, his sense of smell was very strong. Before long he found the place where she had camped, it was several days old. He kept moving.

Sesshoumaru swiftly followed Rin trail, he came across the scents of wolf youkai, and bear youkai. He saw the path of destruction wrought by the bear, and followed it until he came to the carcass of the bear youkai, impaled upon the tree trunks. It didn't strike him as the work of wolves, but knew that Rin wasn't capable of any such thing, though her scent was all over this place, as though she were no longer trying to hide herself. The thought of Rin, possibly abducted by wolves made his blood boil, red started seeping into his eyes before he managed to calm himself.

He followed the scent of Rin and the wolves , at least she was unharmed, he thought. Before long he came across the two bear cubs, and noted Rin's scent was still mingled with wolf scent. A little way away from the cubs corpses he found where Rin had camped with the wolves. He continued to follow her scent, steadily East. He wondered why they were keeping her alive and unharmed. They had better hope she was still okay when he got there.


	11. Chapter 11

The conversation between Sesshoumaru and Kaiko hadn't gone unheard. One of the Tengu daughters, Ritsu had been secretly following Sesshoumaru since she had arrived. Ritsu was able to go undetected. The fan she carried, not only minimized the appearance of her nose, but also, hid her scent, and her youki. Her fan was about eighteen inches long, and steel, the outside edge was wickedly sharp. Needless to say, it was her weapon of choice. It was her constant companion.

As for Ritsu herself, with her fan hiding her nose, she was quite breathtaking, at least in her own opinion. She was almost as tall as Lord Sesshoumaru. Her hair was dark purple, shoulder length, and fanned out around her face in spiky layers. Her kimono was the same shade of teal as her eyes, and her obi was the same color as her hair. The kimono had a lovely pink and green pattern on it.

Ritsu wanted Sesshoumaru. He had power, wealth, and as an added bonus, he was damn sexy. She had tried everything to get him to notice her. Everything short of actually putting her fan down to let him feel her power, for that would mean revealing her huge, ugly nose. Her sister didn't seem as interested in Sesshoumaru, which was a good thing, she was one less rival. That horrid neko youkai was another matter. Ristu had been watching _that one_ too. Fortunately, it looked like she had taken herself out of the contest.

When she heard Sesshoumaru was in love with a human she was enraged. She would follow him, she decided, and see what was so special about this girl. When he flew away, she trailed silently behind him. When he stopped at the odd tree-hut thing, she sensed that the human no longer lived there. When Sesshoumaru went to the village, she searched out the scent of the human and started out on the trail.

She caught up with the human just after dawn. She was surprised to see the human with a pack of wolf youkai, she wondered what Lord Sesshoumaru would think of this? She knew she had a good lead on him, she decided to watch the girl and her wolves for a little while.

l-l-l-l-l-l-l

That morning, Rin and the wolves ate a quick breakfast and headed off, they were hoping to get to their destination within the next two days. Today, Atsushi walked alongside Rin, at the head of the group. She thought this was odd, but she didn't comment on it; instead, she chattered amicably with him about the weather, and the flowers and things that she liked. He smiled and nodded and responded to her words as they went. They were completely unaware of any danger.

They broke out of the tree cover, out into a meadow. Rin saw someone standing across the meadow, it looked like a woman, but she couldn't be sure at this distance. She didn't sense any youki so she didn't think it was a demon. As they approached Rin was better able to make out the strange woman. This woman seemed to be as tall as her lord.

Atsushi stopped. Rin looked at him, "What's wrong?" she looked concerned.

"She is," he answered. "I can't smell her, and surely she's a demon, but I don't sense any power from her at all."

"I was thinking the same thing," she confirmed.

"Come forward, human girl," the strange woman commanded.

"What do you want her for?" Atsushi yelled, stepping in front of Rin, protectively.

"I need to see for myself, this human who stole a great daiyoukai's heart," the woman replied.

Rin gasped at the words. _Does that mean-_ she broke off the thought. Atsushi looked at her, confused. Rin stepped around him, and faced the woman, herself. "Who are you?" Rin asked.

"Not that it concerns you, I am Ritsu. I plan to make Sesshoumaru my mate," she sneered. "You are a pitiful human, you do not deserve the great Lord of the West. Now you shall die." She drew her fan. The wolves saw the menacing gesture and moved to protect their leader, they were afraid of her power because they could not sense it. They were right to be afraid. Ritsu slashed her fan across and razor-sharp blades of wind snaked toward the charging wolves. Koburo and another wolf were in the way of the blades. They couldn't get out of the way fast enough, and were sliced to pieces.

Rin was shocked. She couldn't believe that had just happened. She drew Junbuu, and quickly called on the sword's power. The strongest winds she had yet created thundered out toward the demoness. Ritsu, however, swept her fan in front of her, and laughed as Rin's wind was easily countered.

Ritsu then created a wind of her own. Rin quickly jabbed Junbuu into the ground and held on tight. Atsushi and the other wolves were blown back. Suddenly, Ritsu had Rin by the throat. She folded her fan as she looked the frightened, struggling girl in the eyes. Ritsu extended her claws, and raked them across Rin's throat and chest. Rin started gushing blood all over the front of her shredded kimono, she collapsed to the ground. As she struggled to hold onto consciousness she felt her Lord's energy approaching.

Ritsu knew Sesshoumaru could smell the girl's blood, and that he would be there very soon. She slipped into the trees nearby, to watch, not worrying about being detected. Unfortunately for her she still had Rin's blood on her claws, as Sesshoumaru broke through the trees her smelled her and swiped Bakusaiga across, slicing Ritsu apart with a wave of energy.

Sesshoumaru fell to his knees beside Rin. He lifted her into his arms, she opened her eyes, weakly. "Lord Sesshoumaru," she whispered.

"Rin," he said huskily.

"I always loved you," she placed her hand on his cheek.

"I do love you, Rin. I was coming back for you," he knew she was dying, she had already lost too much blood. The demoness had cut major arteries, and if he tried to move her, she would die anyway. He knew he couldn't bring her back this time. He didn't want to live without her, he had just decided they would be together! He bit his tongue, and he leaned down and kissed her. He grazed her tongue and their blood mingled. He knew it wouldn't save her, but he hoped it would bind their souls together.

"Come back for me, " he whispered to her, "I'll wait for you," he kissed her again.

She smiled weakly, then pulled back and started coughing. His heart ached when he saw her cough up blood. She tightened her grip on him slightly, and then went limp. The spark faded from her eyes, and her body was lifeless in his arms.

He sat there, unmoving. For the first time in his life, he was unsure what to do. He felt something he had never felt before, and reached up to find a single drop of water on his face. _Could it be a tear?_ He wondered. He wanted to get up and lay waste to the entire countryside, or maybe, to go back to the palace and slay the entire Tengu family for their daughter's actions. However, he knew that Rin would be opposed to either action. Instead, he bundled her into his arms, and headed back to his half-brother's village.


	12. Chapter 12

He arrived at Inuyasha's village later that day. He did not want to disturb the children, so he let his power flare to get his half-brother's attention. Inuyasha walked through the forest and faced his half-brother. "Well did you find R-" He broke off as his eyes drifted to the small bundle in Sesshoumaru's arms. "Rin! What happened?" He looked at Sesshoumaru's narrowed eyes.

"If you had kept her here, this wouldn't have happened." Sesshoumaru growled.

"You made her think you wouldn't come back for her. My wife and I both tried to convince her to stay." Just then, Kagome emerged from the trees, she went to her husband's side and looked toward Sesshoumaru. She saw the form the demon held in his arms, and knew who it must be. She gasped, and then broke into tears.

Sesshoumaru just stood there, scowling slightly. He wasn't sure what to do. He had never cared about a human's death before, he was unsure what the proper procedure was. "Miko," he began, "Take care of her, the way she deserves," he looked down at the ground, barely containing his rage at his own failure; and the other unfamiliar emotions he was feeling.

Kagome dried her tears, and nodded. She wasn't sure but she thought she had heard some emotion in Sesshoumaru's voice. _It couldn't be, _ she thought. She directed Sesshoumaru to the hut in the village reserved for caring for the dead. Then, Kagome sent Inuyasha out to get wood for a pyre. She took the opportunity to inform the children. Once she had somewhat calmed the tears and confusion, she excused herself to care for Rin's body.

Inside the hut, Kagome cleaned around the wound, and stitched it closed. She removed Rin's blood-caked clothing and dressed her in her favorite kimono. Then, she brushed her hair, and cleaned off her face. Once she was satisfied, she went to check on her husband.

Inuyasha, having helped with funerals before, knew what he was doing. He laid out the wood and carefully arranged the pyre. "We won't want to be here for this," he glanced at his half-brother, then looked quickly away, "Kagome told me that Rin had told her once that she wanted to be cremated when she died. That means Kagome has to burn her body. It smells awful when they do that," he risked another glance toward Sesshoumaru. His half-brother was still scowling, but he muttered, "If that was her wish."

Once the pyre was ready, Kagome had Sesshoumaru lay Rin's body on top of it. Kagome said a prayer, and lit the pyre. Inuyasha headed back to the village to avoid the smoke. But, Sesshoumaru just stood there, staring into the flames. Kagome stood there with him, she noticed he had Rin's sword at his hip, she wondered why it was there, but didn't comment. When nothing remained but bones and ashes, Kagome gathered them in a ceramic jar, and sealed them inside. She presented the jar to Sesshoumaru, "She wanted you to have this. Bury it somewhere special," she told him with tears in her eyes.

Sesshoumaru took the jar, seeming as close to awkward as she had ever seen him. He looked at it a moment, then toward the miko. He bowed slightly in her direction, "Thanks." he murmured, then he flew off toward the West.

He flew through the night, clutching the small jar. _This Sesshoumaru has failed, for the first time I had almost realized something great and profound, yet due to my own foolishness and lack of true courage, the opportunity has slipped through my fingers. The demoness Kaiko said, the love between a human and a demon is the greatest thing our kind can ever know. I have to believe that she was right. It is the only way I can explain this odd and uncomfortable feeling I have now. I loved Rin, it must be so. This has to be the most painful thing anyone can experience, even losing my arm didn't hurt like this. No injury I have ever sustained has felt like this._ He looked down at the small jar in his hands._ How will I go on now? How can I?_

He arrived at the field of flowers Rin had loved so much as a child. He landed near the tree where she had told him she loved him for the first time, and wondered if she had truly meant it at that time, or if she had been too young to have such feelings. He set the jar down at the base of the tree, and using his claws, started digging a hole for her. He stopped when the hole was around four feet deep. Slowly, he approached the jar again, it didn't smell like her at all. He lifted it reverently, and gently he placed it at the bottom of the hole. _Good-bye Rin, I can only hope you do come back._ He thought before burying the jar. He sat there the rest of the day and the next night, just to be near her.

The next day, he went back to the palace. He knew he couldn't mate with any of these females now. He stormed past his guards, without a second glance. The guests were, conveniently, gathered for breakfast. They had just about finished and were chatting amongst themselves, when he burst into the room. His mother rose to welcome him as soon as he entered, but before she could speak he roared "Everyone out! The festivities are over, thank you all for coming, now get out of my house!" With that he spun on his heel, leaving a room full of demons with their mouths agape.

He went to his rooms to take care of a few things. Jaken made his way to his Master's room before long, having heard all about Sesshoumaru's actions from his bewildered Lady Mother. "My Lord?" Jaken asked, cowering on the floor in front of him. "Is there something the matter?"

Sesshoumaru glowered at Jaken, "Rin is dead," he stated.

Jaken was stunned, he couldn't believe it, he thought he must have misheard, but he knew better than to ask his Lord to repeat himself, instead, he repeated it himself. "Rin is dead," he whispered, tears forming in his eyes. He never would admit it, but he felt a certain fondness toward the human child he had watched grow into a young lady. He slumped to the floor when Sesshoumaru did not deny the terrible news, but instead looked away.

"I will be leaving shortly," Sesshoumaru said. "You can follow me if you wish, or not I do not care."

Jaken nodded, of course he would follow his master, forever, wherever he went. He rushed off to collect his things, and to prepare A-Un for travel. They were ready within an hour and had set off before the last guests even left.


	13. Chapter 13

They had been traveling for about three weeks now. There was no set destination. He didn't have anywhere he needed to be. He'd let his Mother take care of the West, she had been doing it for so long anyway, what did it matter? He no longer cared.

He sat staring at the stars. They had stopped for rest several hours ago. Jaken and A-Uh slept nearby. He didn't need sleep, but was seriously considering it. Not just any sleep though, he was a demon, so he could sleep for many years if he wished. _I could sleep until she comes back,_ he thought.

Suddenly, he felt a vibration from Rin's sword, like the pulse of a heartbeat. _I thought there was something different about it._

_ You were right Sesshoumaru._ The sword responded.

_A sentient sword? How did Rin come by this?_

_ She was attacked by a wind sprite, its soul gave life to this sword, I am Junbuu. Your soul is linked with my master's, so I will accept you as my master until she returns._

_ Interesting._ Sesshoumaru thought,_ What are your powers?_

_ Impressive, my master never thought to ask, though she seemed to know instinctively how to use the main attack. I have two primary attacks, the first-which was the one my master used- is a strong blast of wind that can cause massive damage to anything in front of it. The second attack, which my master didn't discover, is the ability to create a small tornado to sweep you opponent away. I also have the ability to create a small barrier, but unfortunately, because master did not ask, I could not tell her._

_ So, you must be asked directly, before imparting your knowledge?_

_ Not exactly, if you wonder about something, because our minds are linked, I can give you an answer._

_ Hn._ Sesshoumaru leaned back further into the tree, and closed his eyes, he didn't need sleep, but he decided he'd take the opportunity to rest. He'd test the powers of the sword tomorrow. He had sensed a group of demons somewhere close, and had been planning to intercept them anyway.

The next morning they continued on their way. At around noon, they encountered a swarm of centipede youkai. Sesshoumaru drew Junbuu, and summoned a tornado. The winds whipped around the youkai, lifting them into the air. They were sent crashing in every direction. As the demons righted themselves, the began to charge toward Sesshoumaru. He brought the blade back, and swept it out toward the oncoming rush. Strong winds crashed headfirst into the charging horde, destroying the leaders. The few that remained continued their charge, the nearest dove for Sesshoumaru, but was deflected when he swept the blade up defensively. The demon bounced off the barrier, and crashed into a tree. Sesshoumaru blasted the other two charging youkai, then turned to finish off the one who had hit the tree, but he saw Jaken blasting the centipede's head with the flames from his staff.

_These powers would suit Rin well. Though, Junbuu, you are not as powerful as Bakusaiga._

_ There is room for improvement._

_ Do you mean like Tetsuaiga?_

The sword searched Sesshoumaru's memory for the information mentioned, and after a few moments, _Yes, much like that, but only my true master may strive for the improvement._ The sword sensed Sesshoumaru felt he would do it for her.

_ That would mean Rin. Hn._ Sesshoumaru sheathed the sword and blocked its access to his mind.

"Come Jaken," he said to the imp.

They traveled the lands for many years, battling lesser demons, and helping humans when he came across those in danger. He knew Rin would approve. He rarely checked on things in the west, preferring to roam the countryside, hoping to find her again. The humans remained at war with each other. He watched as they massacred each other, never lifting a hand to either assist nor stop them.

Every year, at the same time, Sesshoumaru would go to Rin's field, and visit her grave. Jaken was never allowed to accompany him to Rin's grave. During his visits, he would sit among the flowers, tying them into chains, which he would lay on top of the stone he had placed as a marker. Sesshoumaru would never allow himself to be seen tying flower chains. When he visited he stayed for a day and a night, then he would return to Jaken.

During one of his visits-the fiftieth one- he was sitting among the flowers, when he felt a jolt. He sat bolt upright and looked all around. He could sense something far to the west. His heart jumped, _Rin?_

_ Master!_ The thought came from the sword. _ She has been reborn!_

Sesshoumaru rose, and headed back toward Jaken. The imp was surprised to see his master so soon. He was even more surprised to see a smile on his lord's face. He jumped onto A-Un's back and followed his master off to the west.


	14. Chapter 14

1557 A.D. England,

Early one morning, in the dark before the dawn a woman grunted, and strained with effort. She endeavored not to scream out loud with the pain. She gave one last mighty push and relaxed when she heard the sound of her baby crying. The midwife wiped the babe down and passed the mewling infant over to her mother.

"There you are, love," the kind old lady whispered to the new mother. "The worst is over now, it will be a while before you're completely healed, though. Just relax and enjoy your new child."

The woman nodded, and looked down at the beautiful little baby in her arms. She felt a sharp pang in her chest, _She looks just like her father._ The midwife left the room to collect fresh bedding for the beautiful woman who had turned up at the church door a few days ago, heavily pregnant, begging for help. As soon as the old lady left the room the woman burst into uncontrollable sobs. A part of her had wanted the child to look like her, she couldn't bear the painful reminder of her lost love. Instead, the child had her father's dark hair and eyes.

The man who had fathered this beautiful child had died two months ago. The pain was still fresh in the woman's heart. She had wept every day since the horrible accident that had taken him from her. She gently stroked the child's head, and kissed the sweet babe on her forehead. The baby nuzzled into her mother, comforted and content.

The midwife, Katherine, re-entered the room with fresh linens for the bed. As she changed the bedclothes under the weary woman she asked, "What will you name her?"

The beautiful woman remembered what her husband had said about that, _"If its a girl, can we name her Rin, after my mother? Karin? It would have meant so much to her._

"Rin." she stated.

"That's a rather unusual name, madame."

The woman smiled softly, "Her father was from Japan, I met him when I was very young. My father was an explorer, when he went to Japan he took me with him. We came across a small village, and that's where I met Koji. He was my age. My father had been teaching me the language for years already, in fact, he taught me many languages.

Koji and I were fast friends, and many years later we realized we loved each other. We were married two years ago, and after a while conceived this beautiful child." She sighed, and her eyes welled up with tears again.

"He died." she sobbed. "Two months ago. It was Market day, we were traveling down the road for fresh supplies, and food. There was a commotion behind us, and before I knew it he had pushed me into a side alley. Down the road a horse had spooked and was charging wildly down the road. It thundered through obstacles, knocking anything and everything out of its way. Unfortunately, it crashed into the cart that was behind Koji, as he protected me. Koji was crushed by the heavy cart, and then under the hooves of the terrified animal. I was told he died instantly, and probably didn't even feel pain. I pray to God they are right. I can't bear the thought that my beloved was in any pain." She went silent, staring at the sleeping babe in her arms. "I came here because I didn't know where else to go."

Katherine looked down at the beautiful woman with tears in her eyes. "You poor child. You are safe here, you and your child are in the house of God. Now hand over the babe and go to sleep, you've been up a day and a night and you need sleep to recover."

The woman complied, handing her baby over to the older woman. Then Mary Elizabeth sank into the pillows and fell into a fitful slumber.

The two of them would live happily with the nuns for the next ten years. Mary Elizabeth swore herself to the church and became a nun, so she and her daughter would be provided for. She taught her daughter everything she had ever learned. By the time Rin was six she could fluently speak English, Spanish, French, and Most importantly Japanese. She taught her daughter everything she would ever need to know about her unique heritage. Most important she made sure the beautiful child knew she was loved, and very special.

Rin, herself, was precocious. She was charming and could win over anyone she spoke with. The nuns loved to chat and laugh with the lovely girl. She loved flowers, and animals and frequently chased the rabbits in the fields. Everyday-when the weather permitted-she picked fresh wildflowers to cheer up the various rooms in the vast church. She faithfully attended mass with her mother and the sisters, and never once questioned her faith.

That is, until the day her mother-her whole world-died. She had been sick for a while. She didn't think Rin knew, but of course, the child did, she could tell. She worried about the way the sisters always spoke in hushed whispers. Her mother had had a bad cough for a while. Every once in a while she would get dizzy, or faint. Rin remembered, fearfully, when she had seen her cough up blood. She prayed feverishly to God to make her mother better. But no amount of praying helped, and Rin watched, helplessly as her Mother weakened. She could hardly eat, and lost a lot of weight. She looked as frail as an old woman, though she was barely in her thirties.

One night, as Rin sat by her mother's side, the woman she had adored her whole life, took her by the hand and said, "Stay strong, Rin. I won't last much longer." She saw her daughter's eyes well up. "Don't cry for me, Rin. I will get to see your father again."

"But Mother," The girl wept, "I will miss you, please don't go."

"I'm sorry, love. That is not up to me. The illness I have has no cure. I'm sorry, dear, I wish I could always be here for you." The woman was wracked with a strong fit of coughing. When the coughs subsided, she panted to catch her breath. "I love you, my dear, just know your father and I will be watching you from heaven." She was hit with another strong coughing fit, and after several minutes collapsed lifeless to the bed mid-cough, blood spilling out of the side of her mouth.

Rin clutched at her mother's hand, and cried. She begged her to come back, and prayed to God that she open her eyes. Her prayers went unanswered, and before long, one of the sisters came to check on them. When she saw that the Mary had finally passed, she ran from the room to inform the other sisters, then returned and too Rin by the shoulders. She directed her to another room, and then brought the child into a warm embrace. "Fear not, child," she smiled down at the pitiful girl, and wished she could replace her customary smile, but she knew it would be quite a while before the child would be able to smile again. "You're Mother is now at peace with our Lord, she will never hurt, or want for anything ever again, and sickness cannot touch her there."

Rin cried into the sweet woman's shoulder and felt a little better knowing her mother was no longer in pain. A thought struck her, "Can I still stay here?'" she asked.

"Of course, my dear, as long as you desire, though, eventually you will need to become a sister if you wish to continue residing here."

Rin considered this, "How long until I must decide, Sister Annalina?"

"Oh, not until you are an adult, dear, do not worry for now." She squeezed the girl on the shoulder, reassuringly.

That night, Rin wept for hours. She tried to remember all the wonderful times with her mother, instead of dwelling on her death, but just thinking about her was painful. She wished she could just sleep, but unfortunately, the sweet oblivion of unconsciousness would not overtake her. She cried herself to exhaustion, and blissfully she fell into a dreamless sleep, shortly after midnight.

l-l-l-l-l-l-l

For five years he searched the villages in Japan, always moving toward the west, he never felt any nearer to her though. Sesshoumaru traveled as far as he could west. He reached the ocean and still felt the pull coming from the west. He would have to cross the ocean. Very well, it had been a while since he had visited the mainland. He had spent quite a good deal of time there in his youth, and spoke many of the dialects fluently. Languages had always come easy for him, and he spoke several. Occasionally he had had to deal with demonic emissaries from other countries, asking for favors or peace, or challenging him personally. He had made a point to learn the languages as soon as he encountered them, he didn't like the idea of possible enemies plotting against him right in front of him.

He looked at A-Uh. The two-headed dragon was exhausted. There was no way the beast would be able to fly across the ocean at this point. Sesshoumaru scanned the shore, until he located a pier. He gently landed next to a ship large enough to accommodate the large dragon. He recognized the scent of it from somewhere, his eyes widened when they settled on the captain. The ship's captain was ordering the sailors around, eager to make way. He looked over to the pier, and eyed Sesshoumaru suspiciously. "What do you want, ye crusty demon!"

The captain shouted at Sesshoumaru. The Inuyoukai only smirked in response.

The captain leapt from the side of the ship to the pier, landing gracefully in front of the demon lord. "Well if it isn't InuTaisho's boy!" The crusty sea-dog exclaimed. "I haven't seen you since you were knee high, boy! How have you been? Sorry to hear about yer pop, I heard he went nobly."

Sesshoumaru looked at the captain curiously, "Nobly?"

"He died for the woman he loved, right? Sounds pretty noble to me. If I had a woman I would die for, I sure as hell wouldn't be traveling all over in this tub." he smirked, "So what brings you here, pup?"

"I need to go to the mainland, are you headed there?"

"Sure am. You plannin' on bringin' that thing?" he asked indicating A-Un.

Sesshoumaru nodded, "They will fly part-way, they wouldn't be able to make it the whole way across."

The captain nodded, "Alright, pup, but you and that imp better make yourselves useful, I've no room for ilde hands on my deck. Get ye into that hold and help batten everything down, we sail tonight!"

"Yes, Uncle," Sesshoumaru answered. He grabbed Jaken by the collar, and carried him into the hold. The captain took A-Un by the reins, he was surprised how big the beast had gotten since he had given them to Sesshoumaru as a gift when he was a child. He guided the dragon to a comfortable spot on the deck, where they wouldn't be too in the way. One of the heads nuzzled his shoulder in recognition. He reached up and stroked the head gently, "I wonder what that pup's after." He murmured. The dragon uttered a soft groan, almost as if to answer.


	15. Chapter 15

In the months following her mother's death, Rin slowly started picking up her mother's duties. The church was a very large, and old building. There were always places in need of cleaning. The sisters, of course, saw it as their duty to keep the cleanliness of their home a top priority. Everyday, Rin had a new list of spots to clean, she got very good at it. After another five years, the nuns noticed her skill and wanted to send her into the service of an affluent family in town, that is if she wished it.

Rin was pretty sure she didn't want to be a nun. She considered herself Catholic, but didn't want to devote her life to the Church, like her mother had. She wanted something more from life, she just didn't know what. The sisters knew this, they had coaxed Rin into opening up to them, they wanted what was best for the sweet girl they had helped raise. They had graciously offered her a way out, assuring her that she could come back if she wished.

Rin decided to take them up on the offer, so at age 15, Rin became a maid in the local baron's household. Her duties were much the same, though the scenery had become much richer, and more vibrant. The girl was ecstatic the first time she laid eyes on the interior of the lavish home. The furniture looked so plush, yet elegant at the same time, with its elaborately carved wood accents shining darkly. She was astonished at the luxury of it all. She had to keep from gaping as she was acquainted with her surroundings. Her eyes sparkled as they took in the paintings and tapestries lining the walls, and well, just everything the mansion contained.

Even her own quarters were more luxurious than she had at the church. Living with the sisters she had a small hard cot, and she had shared the room with ten other women. Here, she was told, she would share her room in the servant's wing with three other maids. When she was shown the room she was pleased by the sight of four, real, though small beds. Against one wall was a large wardrobe, she was informed her uniform could be found within, and that she was expected to change and report to the kitchen.

When she was alone in the room she went to a bed, she pressed her hand down on it to test its softness, she was pleasantly surprised. She was going to like it here. Her attention was drawn by a spot of color out the window. She approached the window in awe, outside was the most beautiful, and lavish garden she had ever seen. The Baron's gardens were the pride of the countryside, people traveled from all over England to marvel at their beauty.

With a contented sigh, she turned away from the window, and stepped toward the large wardrobe. Facing the double doors, she gripped the handles and opened them. She looked at the outfit within, there was a black dress with a high collar; a white apron, white stockings, and black shoes. When she put the dress on, it came down almost to her ankles. When she was all dressed she took a pleased look at herself in the mirror inside the door of the wardrobe, before hurrying off to the kitchen to learn of her duties.

When Rin arrived at the kitchen, she was amazed at the bustle of activity, then she realized it must be almost noon, she had taken longer to get ready than she had thought. Across the room a large blonde man with a bushy mustache spotted her, he made his way over to her.

"You must be Rin, the new girl," he greeted. She nodded and quickly bobbed a curtsy toward him. He smiled warmly at her, "My name's Walter, but everyone here just calls me Cookie," he grinned.

She smiled back to him, "It's a pleasure to meet you, Cookie," she said.

He pointed to a tray of delicious smelling food, "Take that to the dining room, you need to introduce yourself to the Baron and his family."

She hefted the large tray, checked her balance, and smoothly headed into the dining room. She gently placed the tray down on the table, and faced the Baron with a deep curtsy. He smiled and acknowledged her.

"You must be the new maid, please introduce yourself."

She flashed a smile, "My name is Rin, Baron Stanley. It is a pleasure to be here, I feel so blessed." She smiled at the Baron's wife and their two children. "I look forward to serving for you all," she curtsied again.

"It is a pleasure to meet you Rin, we look forward to your service, you are excused," Baron Stanley replied.

Rin nodded and exited the room, she headed back to the kitchen. She met up with Cookie again. "So, how'd it go?" he asked her.

"Okay, I think," she shrugged. "He said they looked forward to my service, so that's a good thing," she smiled up at him, "So, what next?"

He grinned, "Right down to business, eh?"

She grinned back and nodded, "I wouldn't have it any other way."

"In that case head to the third room on the right down that hall and help Emmy with the potatoes, that girl's liable to cut off her own thumbs."

She nodded and bobbed a curtsy to him, before hurrying down the hall to meet Emmy.

l-l-l-l-l-l

Sesshoumaru's 'Uncle' wasn't really his uncle, he was blood related, but they were more like second cousins on his father's side. 'Uncle' Nemo was several centuries older than Sesshoumaru. The gruff sea captain preferred to simply be called 'Captain' by his crew, and demanded that Sesshoumaru do the same while aboard his ship.

They made good headway to the mainland, the winds were with the ship and the voyage promised to be swift. Sesshoumaru perched himself on top of the tallest mast to keep a lookout. One night, Nemo perched beside him. "Why are you heading to the mainland, Nephew?"

Sesshoumaru glanced sidelong at him, "That is none of your concern." he stated.

"Oh, I know that, I was just wonderin'. If ye feel like tellin' me, I'll be around." he jumped down and continued with what he had been doing.

_Rin,_ Sesshoumaru thought, _How did you do this to me? The moment I saw you, that very first time, you started etching your own place in This Sesshoumaru's heart, and every moment I spent with you after further secured your rightful place there. I watched you grow, and I grew uncomfortable with it. I wanted you to stay small and innocent, and mine forever. I didn't want to feel- other ways- about you, but I couldn't help it. I knew at your age, you would start having romantic feelings but, I never thought you would have them toward me. Soon, I could tell you did though, your heart would race when you even looked at me, and you always had a lovely blush covering your face. I knew you had them, but I- well I don't know what I thought, when I left you. I was only thinking about myself, and power. I was forbidding my own feelings, as usual. I never thought about losing you again. I guess, I thought you would always be there. I would have followed you to hell again, if I could have. I will find you, and this time I won't lose you. _He stared up into the starry sky and continued to think of her.

After they reached the mainland Sesshoumaru kept feeling the tug, continually from the west. He searched villages, and spoke to villagers to no avail. He headed ever westward, adopting native attire and learning different languages as he went. He noticed the demons of the west tended to camouflage themselves as humans, and tried to do the same, although he found he could do nothing with his hair his magenta stripes disappeared, and his crescent moon turned white, like a scar, or birthmark. Finally, he reached England, and- through a friend- was invited to a certain Baron's home for a feast.


	16. Chapter 16

Sesshoumaru was appalled at the current fashion in England. _This Sesshoumaru does not wear _hose_, nor codpieces for that matter._ He decided to wear his spidersilk armor. He _was_ a visiting emissary, he may as well dress the part. He had disguised Jaken, he wasn't green anymore, but he was still an ugly midget- if possible he was even uglier now. He couldn't change A-Un's form, dragon's being immune to magic and all, so he had him hide in the woods nearby.

He had spent a few months in the countryside, visiting various other nobility in the area, and learning more about the customs of this new land. As he approached Baron Stanley's mansion, the tug he had started feeling fifteen years ago was the strongest he had ever felt it. He almost gasped aloud, but he remained stoic and refused to show any discomfort. He was greeted at the door by a very proper looking butler. "Good afternoon, gentlemen. You are here for the feast I presume?" Sesshoumaru nodded. The butler smiled politely, "May I ask your names?"

Jaken spoke up, "This is Lord Sesshoumaru, we have traveled all the way from Japan, and have been exploring the world for many years."

"Ah yes, Lord Sesshoumaru we have been expecting you. Please come in," the butler headed toward the door. Once they were inside, the butler turned to the two disguised demons. "My name is Albert, I am the head butler, if you are dissatisfied with anything, let either myself or one of the maid know I will make sure its taken care of immediately." Sesshoumaru only nodded. Albert gave a polite bow, and then called for a maid to escort them to their room.

A bubbly blonde haired, blue eyed wisp of a girl appeared before them, she curtsied and said, "My name's Emmy, follow me, sirs," she smiled. She bobbed cheerfully as she led them down the halls. A part of Sesshoumaru wanted to follow the tug he felt, but he had waited this long, he could continue to wait. He didn't want to appear rude, and he expected that a tour to show off this exquisite mansion would certainly have been arranged for all the guests. He would cross paths with her sooner or later, the only question was how much she had changed.

The girl stopped in front of a door about midway down the hallway on the east side of the house. She drew a key, and unlocked the heavy oak door, then she turned and handed the key to Sesshoumaru, "Don't lose it she admonished, we do expect it back," she smiled. He nodded, and strolled into the lavish room. He noted the large four-poster bed, with dark canopy curtains. The mattress looked plush under many layers of comforters. He wondered if Rin slept in something like that, he could almost imagine her there- a thought suddenly occurred to him- _What if she doesn't look the same? Will she still be the same Rin, or will she be like Inuyasha's mate and the formerly undead miko? Would she still be called Rin? Why didn't any of this occur to me before?_ He looked toward Emmy and nodded, excusing her. She quickly turned, and skipped down the hall.

Emmy hurried into the room she shared with Rin and two other girls, Cara, and Helen. She seized Rin by the arm and squealed. "What! What is it? What is the matter with you, Emmy?"

"The newest arrival! He has to be the most attractive man I've ever seen- and such strange coloring!" she sighed, "He didn't say much, come to think of it I don't think he said anything, the little guy did the talking." Rin listened as her friend prattled on, she had gotten used to her friends incessant chatter over the past few months. Living for so long with the sisters, she wasn't used to having someone to giggle with during the day. In the church chores were to be taken seriously. When her friend said the lord's name, Rin felt like she had heard it before, but dismissed it as maybe from something her mother had told her, the young lord was from Japan, after all. After her friend had finished her story, Rin headed to the door, "We should head down to the kitchen," she said. "We'll be needed before too long."

Sure enough, as soon as they set foot into the kitchen, Cookie shouted for them to come over to him. The girls hurried to report to Cookie, while being careful to avoid getting in the way of the other servants hurrying around the kitchen, preparing food, or fetching fresh ingredients for the cooks. When the girls reached his side Cookie handed a list to Rin, he had been surprised to learn that Rin's mother had taught her to read and write. It was a valuable skill, and not many men- let alone women- possessed it. Cookie used it to his advantage and had come to depend on Rin to help him delegate the various tasks he was responsible for. Eventually, he would tell Albert, or even Baron Stanley himself, and allow Rin a promotion, but until the feast was over, he really needed her.

"Rin, I'm relying on you to help make sure this feast goes off without a hitch. Now, the feast itself is still two days away, but the guests have been arriving since yesterday. We're still waiting on a few guests, but many have already arrived, so think of these next two days as a warm up. On that list are your responsibilities for the next few days. You will also be in charge of Emmy, Cara and Helen, there are a lot of things on that list, so you'll need the help," he winked at her. "I trust that you can handle this?"

Rin scanned the list carefully, then looked Walter in the eye. "Consider it done," she smiled. Rin bobbed a quick curtsy, then grabbed Emmy by the hand and went off in search of the other two girls. When she found them they were washing dishes. "Dry your hands girls, and come with me. I have a long list of things I need you to help me with, and together we can make it fun." she smiled. The two girls dried their hands gratefully, and followed Rin.

Rin looked at her list and asked Cara, "Would you and Helen prefer to go to the butcher and fetch some meat or go to the mill for flour?" Cara thought about it for a moment, before turning to Helen, "What do you think?"

Helen blushed, "Well, there is that new boy at the butcher's, Christopher, if we go there we might see him," she mumbled, turning a deep shade of crimson. The other girls giggled, Rin put her hand on her friend's back, "Sorry, that was cruel of me, you're just too cute when you blush, I couldn't help it." She winked at Emmy, "Why don't we head down to the mill?"


	17. Chapter 17

The two girls joked and giggled the whole way to the mill. Rin knew Emmy had a crush on the miller's son, Benjamin, and she liked to tease her about it. Emmy wasn't nearly so obvoius about her crush as Helen, but after enough teasing she turned a cute shade of red. Rin stopped teasing as they got closer to the mill, she wanted her friend to look cute for the boy, not bright red and embarassed.

They stopped outside, Rin fixed Emmy's hair, before they opened the door and stepped inside. The inside of the mill smelled musty, and there seemed to be dust everywhere. They heard a shuffling sound from the back, and soon saw Frank, the miller emerge from the back room. The girls curtsied,

"Good afternoon, Frank," Rin said, "We've come for Cookie's supplies."

"Hey girls, right, of course. Hey Benny! Grab the order for the Estate!" Frank shouted back to the back room. "He'll be right out with it." Frank smiled and headed to the back to finish what he had been doing. A few minutes later a young man, with sandy blonde hair and blue-green eyes stepped into the room with two sacks of flour over his shoulders. He handed one each to the two girls, then he smiled. "You sure you girls can handle those?" he joked, he knew they could, he always asked anyway.

The girls nodded, "Don't worry, _Benny_," Emmy replied, smiling when she saw him blush. "Well, see you later." The girls waved good-bye on their way out.

When the two were well down the road Emmy squealed, "Did you see him blush? So handsome!"

Rin giggled, "Who knew Emmy could be so bold as to refer to young master Benjamin by his nickname!"

"Yes well, I want him to know I like him- and well, I figured that might do it, and after hearing his father call him that, I just couldn't help myself." Emmy had returned to the bright red shade she had been on their way to the mill. She moved her sack of flour to the other shoulder, and noticed a cart heading slowly down the road. She motioned to Rin to move to the side of the road. The two girls moved to the side to wait for the cart to pass. As it approached they noticed the driver was slumped down, not even holding the reins. He looked unconcious.

Rin stepped forward, and grabbed the reins, "Sir? Sir, are you okay?" He didn't move, but she saw he was still breathing.

"He looks ill," Emmy said, "What should we do?"

"We have to help him." Rin replied, she led the horses down the road to the estate. The giggley mood was gone, and the girls somberly headed home.

When they got back, Rin took both flour sacks to the kitchen, then ran to the head maid, Marie, and told her about the ill man waiting outside with Emmy. When they got back outside Emmy was chatting with a stableboy, who had, undoubtably, come to see if the horses needed tending. Marie took one look at the man and knew he was in a bad way. Joseph, call a couple boys over here and carry this man into one of the empty storerooms near the servant's quarters, at once." The boy nodded and ran off. Marie looked at the two girls, "Follow me, ladies. I want to know how you found him. You will tell me as we set up a cot for our sick guest."

Rin and Emmy told the story, and said they didn't know what else they could do, but to bring him home with them, the Bible said to love thy neighbor, they couldn't very well leave him in that state. As they finished explaining themselves, the boys carried the man in, and set him down on the cot. Marie removed his jacket, hat and boots, and set them aside. She felt his forehead, he was burning up. "Rin, get a wet cloth for his forehead, please," she murmured.

Rin scurried out of the room and returned shortly with a pitcher full of cool water, and a clean cloth. She poured the water into a basin and set it on the table next to the cot. She soaked the cloth, then wrung it out and wiped the man's forehead, and cleaned his face. He looked really pale, and was breathing shallowly.

"Get back to your work, I know you're busy." Marie said to them. The girls nodded and left the room. They took the long way back to the kitchen, neither one really looking forward to getting back to work.

l-l-l-l-l

He was heading to dinner. He wasn't looking forward to pretending to enjoy whatever human food they were planning on serving him, but he wouldn't want to appear rude. Suddenly, he smelled _Her_, that sweet-spicy scent, like cinnamon and fresh flowers. _At least her scent is the same._ He knew she was close, and so, wasn't completely surprised, when she appeared around the corner. He was surprised, however, to see her dressed as a servant. He supposed he shouldn't really have been surprised, and found he had been hoping for better for her. He had never hoped for anything. _What has this girl done to me?_ He waited for her to acknowledge him, he wanted her to remember him.

Rin blushed, and her heart started beating really fast. _Oh wow, I should have paid more attention when Emmy was describing him. This must be Lord Sesshoumaru, he is really handsome._

"You must be Lord Sesshoumaru. My name is Rin, if there is anything I can do for you, please let me know," she curtsied. When he didn't respond, she said, "Hajimemashite, watashi no namae wa Rin-desu," and she bowed deeply. Then she smiled at him. He nodded, and continued on his way.

She didn't remember him. He wasn't sure how to procede from here. She looked the same, except for the clothes. He had to admit, these western clothes looked good on her. Her hair hadn't grown out fully, it was longer than the last time he had seen her. He pulled out the lock of her hair he kept in his kimono, it still smelled like her.

As he approached the dining room, he put the hair back in its pocket. He entered and sat down in one of the plush seats. He didn't pay much attention to the over-cooked and over-seasoned food served to him. He did pay attention to the conversations around him, mostly court gossip, mixed with half-truths and controversy. _Places change, but all nobility is much the same,_ Sesshoumaru observed.

He smelled her again, she entered the dining room, carrying a large tray containing the next course. She and another maid started setting out servings of roast lamb. When Rin set his plate in front of him, he grabbed her wrist. "That is an interesting birthmark," he stated, as he pushed up her sleeve. On her forearm, was a pale white crescent moon. He looked up at her, and she saw he had a similar white mark on his forehead. She gasped, and pulled her arm away, with her eyes wide. She finished serving the other guests, and then hurried out of the room, carrying the empty tray with her.

Rin was shaken, she wasn't sure what had just happened. The look in his eyes, _What was that?_ she thought. She set the tray down on the dirty dish rack, and headed to another room to check on Emmy. Emmy had been peeling potatoes, and was finishing up, as Rin entered the room.

Rin smiled at her friend. "That was the last thing on our list for the day," she said. The girls both sighed, and smiled at each other.

"We should bring some tea to our sick guest, and see if he's awake yet," Emmy suggested.

Rin nodded, and they headed back to the kitchen. When the tea was ready, they headed to the old storeroom. Marie sat in a chair beside the cot. They could see from her expression he hadn't stirred in the past few hours. "We brought tea," Rin said, placing the tray down next to the older woman. "How is he?"

"I'm not sure, he hasn't woken, or hardly stirred. He has an intense fever, and may not make it through the night. I am doing all I can for him," she looked kindly at the girls, "Go to bed, girls. It is getting late." The girls nodded. The left the room, and headed back to their room. They met up with Cara and Helen, and caught them up with all that had gone on that day, and after much giggling at Cara's recounting of Helen at the butcher's shop, they went to bed.

~End Notes:

The sentance Rin said in Japanese meant: I'm very pleased to meet you, my name is Rin.

I hope you liked it, next chapter coming soon! ^-^


	18. Chapter 18

Disclaimer: Obviously I do not own Inuyasha. I may or may not own the characters I created.

Story Notes:

I know its short, I should have some longer chapters written soon. Meanwhile, enjoy!

_She felt wind in her face, and she opened her eyes, it was dark. Clouds passed and she saw she was high in the sky. Far below, she could see the fires from a village. Strong arms held her small form, cradled and safe. Her view changed and she saw herself, as a small child, being carried by the attractive foreign guest she had met earlier. Her fingers were twined in the fur on his shoulder._

That's strange,_ She thought to herself. _Why does this seem so familiar?

_ They flew ever onward into the night. It seemed to Rin they had been going for hours, when finally they approached a mountain. When they got to the peak, he set her down._

_ When her feet touched the ground, she was instantly transformed into a teenager. She was wearing a beautiful teal and purple kimono, and her hair was down to her waist. Her attention was drawn back to him. His face was unreadable, as he stared at her. He slowly turned to leave. _

_ "Wait!" she said. "You can't leave me here all alone! Please!" He started walking away. "No! Not again! Don't leave!" But it was too late, he had faded into the clouds surrounding the mountain peak._

_ She tried to find her way down the mountain. The clouds made it nearly impossible to see anything. She stumbled several times, before giving in and crawling through the thick clouds. _

_ When she finally made it through, she saw her clothes had changed again. She was wearing a knee-length blue dress. It had short sleeves, and a V-neck. It was lovely, and unlike anything she had ever worn. She looked around, and saw she was no longer on a mountain, in fact there were no mountains in sight, only trees. Walking further she came to a clearing. She looked around the moonlit field, she marveled at all the beautiful flowers. She looked up and saw the moon, slicing a silver crescent in the ink black sky. In the center of the field there stood an enormous tree. He was standing, practically glowing, with his back towards her under the tree._

_ She ran to him. He heard her approach, and turned in surprise. The look on his face was a mix of shock and awe-two things that seemed incongruous on his face to her. What happened next surprised her the most. The look in his eyes softened and he took her in his arms. He tilted her face up to his and whispered in her ear, "Remember."_

_ Then he gently kissed her on her neck, she felt his sharp teeth graze near her shoulder. Her heart was hammering in her chest and her knees felt like they were going to collapse under her at any second. She brought her arms up around his neck, to help steady herself. He looked into her eyes, and he seemed so familiar, but she still couldn't seem to place him. He bent and kissed her deeply on the lips, licking them, asking for more. She parted her lips slightly allowing him in. Suddenly he was gone. She was alone in the field. She had never kissed a boy, had rarely even seen kissing done, and was left breathless, and aching for more. She closed her eyes._

_ When she opened them again she was in the makeshift sick-room. She stood by the man's bedside. Bending over to check on him, she saw he was no longer breathing. She hurried around to the other side of the bed to get a closer look at him. His skin was sickly pale, nearly translucent. His dark hair was plastered to his forehead from the intense fever. Her eyes were drawn down to his collar, and she backed away, horrified. Rin put her hand to her mouth to prevent a scream._

She sat bolt upright in bed, her breathing ragged. The sun was just coming up, the other girls had yet to wake. _What in the world was that dream all about?_ She asked herself, she had a sinking feeling in her stomach. Quickly rising from bed, she threw open the doors of the wardrobe, and dressed quickly. She brushed her hair, and then quietly snuck out of the room without waking the others.

Slowly she crept toward the sick-room, dreading every step. She was terrified by what she suspected, and hoped with all her heart it was misplaced fear. When she arrived at the room, Marie was wrapping the body for the mortuary. Rin gasped and Marie looked over at her. "He didn't make it."

"What happened? How sick was he?"

"He stopped breathing," Marie sighed, "Now, don't go panicking, but," she seemed unsure whether she wanted to proceed, "I think he may have had the plague."

Rin turned white as a sheet, and she leaned against the door frame. "No," she whispered. _Like my dream. Oh dear Lord._

Marie saw the effect the the news had on the girl. "Calm down now, and make yourself useful. It's not your fault if anyone else gets sick, how were you to know?" Marie had finished her ministrations on the body, and washed her hands in the basin. Her gaze settled on Rin once again. the younger girl had calmed considerably. "Now that's better, isn't it, dearie? Now, what I want you to do, is head down the hall and check on those boys who carried our unfortunate visitor in."

Rin, her composure restored, nodded and headed down the hall, hoping against hope, that all the boys would be fine. Heading down the hallway she stopped at a door and knocked. A tall boy with dark features answered the door. "Yes, how can I help you, Rin?"

"Good morning, sorry to disturb you Ethan, but I was wondering how Joseph and Charles were doing?"

"Is it the sick fellow? Did he pass? Charles said he didn't look like he'd make it." Rin nodded solemnly in answer. The older boy turned back into the room, "Hey, guys wake up!" He moved over to Joseph's bed and shook him awake. "Hey, wake up! How do you feel?"

"I feel like was just shaken awake? How should I feel?" Joseph replied blearily.

"That guy from last night died." Ethan answered while crossing the room to shake Charles. "Hey, Charles-" As soon as he placed his hand on Charles' shoulder to shake him, he knew the boy was running a high fever. "Oh dear."

Rin slowly entered the room, "Is Charles sick?" Ethan nodded. "Could you carry him to the sickroom for me?" Another nod. "Thank you, Ethan." Rin turned and headed down the hall to the room where the other two boys were. When she got there she found one of those boys was sick too, so she had him carried to the sickroom as well.

A thought occurred to her that terrified her, she nearly bolted back to her room. The other girls were just rising when she got back, she was relieved to see that Emmy seemed to be just fine. She felt a headache coming on, and dismissed it as being from all the stress, otherwise she felt fine.

Emmy looked at her friend as she entered the room, "Why are you up so early, Rin?"

"Oh, Emmy!" Rin exclaimed, "The man we helped last night died!"

Emmy gasped, "Oh my, did Marie find out what he was sick with?"

_Oh dear, should I tell her?_ Rin looked away. She was no good at lying, and so said, "You can't tell anyone, all of you swear to keep silent." The three other girls nodded solemnly. Rin lowered her voice to barely above a whisper, the other girls leaned in, and she told them. She hadn't expected Helen to faint dead away at the news. The other girls hurried to pick her up and make her comfortable on a bed. Helen soon woke and apologized for fainting, embarrassedly.

Rin looked to Emmy, when she was sure Helen was going to be okay, and asked her friend to go with her to check on Marie, and the two sick boys. The other three girls eyes widened at the news that there were already two sick overnight. Emmy finished dressing, and put her hair in a bun, before following Rin to the sickroom.

End Notes:

My vacation starts on Saturday and I will be home for a whole week, with any luck, I'll be able to knock out a few chapters then.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter Notes: Sorry updating took so long, I've been enjoying my vacation. I would have gotten more work done, but my son got sick so I've been doting on him during the day, and I started playing Skyrim again at night, and well... that game is really involved, and totally awesome, so I've been... preoccupied. I worked really hard on this chapter its kinda long, and um, don't hate me for the end- the story isn't over yet!

The two girls were greeted with the sight of shocked servants hurrying about, making beds and bringing fresh linens. Rin rose her eyebrows and looked around the room, she counted six beds now. Marie caught Rin's look and explained, "If it really is plague, it will spread quickly. I'm being optimistic thinking we'll only need six beds in here before it's gone," she handed the girls handkerchief's, "Put those on over your mouths, these boy's have been coughing, and you don't want to breath that in."

The girls did as they were told, noticing many of the other servants had done the same. Rin had never heard of it done, but it sort of made sense, to think you could get sick from someone like that. "What can we help with?" Rin asked.

"Could you girls bring some broth, tea, and fresh water here, please?" The girls curtsied quickly, and hurried out the door. The two headed solemnly down the halls, the expected excitement about the feast tamped out completely from the shock of the sudden onslaught of events surrounding them. They entered the usual bustle of the kitchen, and were immediately set upon by Walter.

Walter eyed Rin hopefully, "The list?" He prompted. Rin's eyes widened.

"Oh dear, Walter. No, we haven't finished everything yet. Have you heard about the sick fellow from last night?" Walter said he hadn't, so Rin filled him in, explaining why she had gotten side-tracked. Walter paled visibly when Rin told him two boys were already sick.

"Does the Master know?" Walter asked. The girls looked at each other, realizing neither had asked, they both just assumed Marie had taken care of it.

"We'll ask Marie when we get back with the things she asked us to fetch, then we'll hurry back, and complete that list," Rin answered.

Walter nodded. The girls gathered the things they came for and hurried back down the hall. They served the tea, and set the broth and water on the table near the sleeping boys.

"Marie, does the Baron know about all of this?" Rin asked. Marie looked taken aback.

"Of course he does. He told me to do my utmost to take care of this situation, and I am. Do not worry, just keep your hands clean and your faces covered. Neither of you feel sick, do you?" Marie eyed them carefully. Rin still had a slight headache, but it hadn't gotten any worse, otherwise she felt fine, so she just shook her head.

"Well, alright I'm sure the two of you have more than enough to do already, off with you." The girls nodded, and headed back to the kitchen to complete their list.

l-l-l-l-l-l

_I don't understand, she looks the same, she smells the same, but she's not the same. She doesn't seem to remember me, though her body reacts to me. I heard her breathing pattern change, and her heart rate quickened. I saw the color flush her cheeks, but saw no spark of recognition in her eyes. Why is she back, just the same as ever, if she has no memory of before?_

Sesshoumaru was in one of the Baron's gardens. He had had to get away from all those humans, he had been getting used to being around them- there were more in the world now than ever before, but being confined in such close quarters around so many of them was wearing on his nerves. The stench among those living here was not so bad as some he had encountered, the Baron's servants seemed to prize cleanliness, unlike many humans of the time who seemed to think they could become ill from bathing.

He strolled down the meticulously tended garden path, gazing at the lovely flowers and pondering his next move. He couldn't just take her, could he? No, that would probably scare her, and cause a scene. This would have to be handled carefully. _It would be so much easier if she would just remember me._ He would have to make her fall for him again, maybe her memories would come back eventually, and if not, they would just have to make all new ones.

He was unsure how to go about courting her, he was still considered noble, and she was currently a servant. He didn't think the Baron would understand his interest in "the help." He didn't want to disgrace her by purchasing her from the Baron, but saw no other way of freeing her from this life without a lot of lengthy explanations, he still wasn't much of a talker.

Suddenly, he smelled her, the distinct scent of Rin wafting through the garden. He didn't smell or hear anyone with her so, he slowly headed in her direction. He saw her picking fresh herbs from the garden, a wicker basket sitting on the grass next to her. Her dark brown hair brushed her shoulders, and sweat beaded on her forehead, she wiped it off with her sleeve. Her scent was off.

When she had collected all she needed she lifted her basket in the crook of her elbow, and made to rise. Her head was pounding, her headache had gotten much worse, and she didn't feel well at all. As she rose her head swam, and everything went black. Many confused moments later, her vision blurry, she opened her eyes. When her vision cleared she saw she was looking into striking amber eyes that seemed to cause her to feel the oddest sense of deja vu. She found that they were down on the ground, her head in his lap. She blushed up at him, and made to get up. He held her there with a gentle hand, vague look of sadness in his eyes.

"Please, don't move," he whispered, the softness of his voice causing her to look at him curiously. "You are ill," he sighed. She nodded and closed her eyes, relaxed. His earlier thoughts had flown from his head. It did not look likely they would get the chance to make new memories together. Plague. He had encountered it before, on his way through China. It had been ravaging the region for hundreds of years already, he had never heard of a cure for it. He allowed his youki to flare briefly, calling Jaken to him.

When Jaken approached his lord, he smelled something familiar. He emerged around a hedge, and fell over in shock, "Rin!" He exclaimed, he looked to his lord for an explanation.

"Yes Jaken, she has been born again, I felt it years ago, and have been trying to find her. Unfortunately, she doesn't remember me, and it looks like she'll die again, she has the plague."

With that Rin opened her eyes, and looked at Sesshoumaru curiously, "So, I do know you?" she asked him. "You seemed so familiar, I'm sorry I can't remember you, I wish I could." Her breathing became labored, and she started coughing into her sleeve. When the fit had passed, she looked into his eyes, "I dreamt about you last night, we were flying."

He brushed the hair away from her face, "We have done that," he stated. "In your past life, we did that often. We traveled, and battled demons- Well I battled the demons for the most part, though before you died you were getting quite good at it." He smiled gently down at her, still stroking her hair.

"Were we in love?" she asked, she wasn't sure why but, she seemed to feel strongly for this man, though he obviously wasn't just a man, she could tell.

He hesitated, he wasn't sure how to answer, they only confessed just before she died, and here he was doing it again. He took a deep breath before he continued. "We should have been," he sighed. "I was a fool, and made a stupid mistake." He looked away from her and was silent for a few moments. "I broke your heart," he said, still not looking at her, "I made you think I didn't care, and I left you alone. Because of my mistake, you died. I had come back for you, but I was too late. As you lay dying I told you I loved you, and you swore to come back again." He spoke softly, and almost sorrowfully, though his expression remained close to stoic the entire time. He still refused to look at her, as though he were afraid to see her reaction to his story.

She reached a hand up to his face, and turned his head to look at her. The heat coming off of her skin shocked him, her fever was getting severe. He looked into her eyes, and saw deep affection and kindness in her expressive brown eyes. "It sounds like I forgave you," she said, smiling.

It was too late to ask Jaken to get anything to try to cure her, and he knew his blood wouldn't save her now, she would have needed it before she got sick. She would only last a few hours, at most.

"Rin, will you tell me about your life?" he asked tentatively. "I'm just curious."

"I'm dying again, aren't I?" she asked. He looked away from her again. "I suppose I knew that. Very well, I will tell you all you wish to know, but I want

to hear about you too," she smiled up at him.

She told him her story, all about her mother and the sisters; about how she never knew her father; how she came to be here, and as her story went on she had to stop more frequently, just speaking took everything out of her. Every time she stopped, he would fill the silence with memories he had shared with her, stories of a sweet young child, and later of a fiery young woman. His stories sparked something within her, and she started remembering her old self. She loved him, she had known the very moment she had first seen him, she had been thunderstruck, and now she knew why. Her only wish was that they could be together, she reached out and weakly grasped his hand.

"My Lord," Rin whispered, he looked down at her, surprised at the honorific, and saw the spark he had been hoping for in her eyes, he smiled sadly. "I remember now, I remember it all. It wasn't all your fault, Rin left the village. Rin put herself in danger." She hadn't referred to herself in the third person since she was small, and wondered at it now, but it seemed right to her somehow. "Rin is sorry, My Lord," she felt weak, her vision began blurring again.

Sesshoumaru gathered her into his arms, "Do not apologize," he stated. He kissed her brow as she lost consciousness. He carried her into the palace, and followed his nose to the sickroom. She had died in his arms before they arrived, he had felt her last heartbeat, and last breath. Her friends could have done nothing for her anyway. He was glad he could be here to comfort her this time, and could only hope she would come back again. He left her with Marie, and disappeared from the estate night.

End Notes: Eeek! Don't shoot me! Updates soon! Please review, thanks! ^-^


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